


Control

by yuma (yuma_writes)



Category: Stargate SG-1
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama, Flashbacks, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Syndrome - PTSS, Torture, Violence
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 1999-07-28
Updated: 2013-12-30
Packaged: 2018-10-07 02:51:58
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 65,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10350777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yuma_writes/pseuds/yuma
Summary: Daniel and the SG-5 disappears during a routine mission.Warning! Implies extreme violence.Occurs during the third season of Stargate SG-1





	1. The beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Yuma, the archivist: this work was originally archived at [Stargatefan.com](http://fanlore.org/wiki/Stargatefan.com). To preserve the archive, we began manually importing its works to the AO3 as an Open Doors-approved project in 2017. I e-mailed all creators about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact me using the e-mail address on [StargateFan Archive Collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/StargateFan_Archive_Collection).

Even when Colonel Jack O'Neill had first taken up this mission, he'd had a bad feeling about the place. Something about the whole thing that had given him a chill in his bones he knew had nothing to do with the cold. But the urgency behind this mission, the desperate need for it to be a success, had superceded his instincts - he had gone blindly through the Stargate with the rest of his team. 

Now staring at the business end of a gun, Jack decided that he should listen to his instincts more often. The colonel had tried to step forward, tried to talk to him, but the gun had swung towards him and all Jack could do was watch helplessly as the hammer cocked into the barrel. 

"You don't want to do this," Jack said softly, eyes glued to his face rather than the gun. The colonel wanted to tell him to lower his gun, to say that everything was going to be all right. 

But he never had a chance. 

The shot rang throughout the forest, it's vibrations echoing, the sound shattering it's natural silence. Strange white birds took flight, suddenly filling the dark emerald sky with their startled calls. 

+++++++++++++++++++++ 

_The Beginning..._

The blinding light that was shining through the small opening signalled that it was a new day. And, as always, the brightness hurt his eyes. He screwed them shut as tightly as he could and relied on sound alone, like he had in the endless days that had come before. 

Too many days. He had lost count. 

The sound of heavy footsteps pounding the stone hallways alerted him that he was going to have visitors. 

They were coming. 

Whimpering, the prisoner shuffled away from the door despite the many times before that he had found it pointless to resist. The guards would come into the room anyway, grab him painfully under the arms, and drag him out to... 

To her. 

And now they were coming back. Back to return him to her. 

Soft cries of fear escaped his parched lips and he couldn't stop himself from trembling. He pressed himself against the wall, praying once more that the shadows of his dank cell would conceal him, praying that the guards would tire of looking for him. That somehow they would not see him hiding, deep in his dark corner where the rats squealed and scampered. 

"This one," a voice said from outside the heavy door. 

Teeth chattering, he wrapped his arms tightly around a chilled body shaking with minute convulsions. Knees drawn up to his chest, the man tried his very best to hide. 

_Have to hide. Have to hide. No more. Please. No more._

Clang went the bolt outside, and the thick metal door swung open. The shivering now shook the prisoner's entire body to a point that it sounded deafening to his ears. It was so loud that he didn't hear a gasp from near the doorway, or the soft-spoken cursing. Heavy boots clomped closer to where he was hiding. The rats squealed as one of his visitors kicked them away from him. 

"Oh my God," a voice said, as the person speaking reached out to touch him. 

Pain. 

He whipped out his arms, frantically trying to push them away before the pain returned, but they were stronger than he was. They always were. He had to try! He had to stop the pain! So he fought, ignoring the excruciating needles that were stabbing into his stomach, his side, his back. 

"Damn it... hold him still... he..." a gruff voice muttered softly, as someone tried to hold him. 

"We have to hurry..." 

Another voice, softer... like her voice... It sounded like her voice... No! She was here! In here, right now! He had to stop them from taking him back to her! 

"I know, but we have to calm him down first before we can... oww!" 

There. He had got one. He could feel the hands let go of him, and he fought harder. But more hands came. They were grabbing him by the ankles so he could no longer kick, clamping down on his shoulders so he couldn't twist away. He couldn't stop himself whimpering, and he heard the sound as it escaped from his throat. 

He couldn't do it. They were too strong. Too strong. He was going back to her and the pain was going to start again... 

"Damn it!" 

"Are you alright?" 

"Got me good, but I'm all right. Hold him still, Major. Let me try." 

He felt himself being sat up and nausea swept over him like a wave. He found himself up against the wall, it's rough surface rubbing the wounds on his back. He cried out in pain and the gruff voice cursed again. 

"Damn, his back is pretty bad. Lean him against me, I'll see if I can carry him." 

"I can carry," a deeper voice, one he hadn't heard before. 

"No, we need you to help give us cover, or we'll never get us out of here. I'll... I'll do it." 

Strong arms, stronger than his, wrapped around his shoulders and under his knees and he found himself being lifted up. The gruff voice grunted. 

"Sir?" The soft voice spoke up again. 

"Nothing... I just realized..." The gruff voice paused and went deeper. "He's lost weight. He's a lot lighter than I thought. Those bastar-" 

"Sir." 

The gruff voice sighed, the man's arms tightened around him and he panicked. There was no escape now. He was going back. Why hadn't he fought harder? 

He struggled against the gruff voice's hold but he felt the grip tightening. His lip trembled and he couldn't silence the panicked sounds that came mewling out of his mouth. 

"Shh... It's okay. It's over. We're taking you home." 

The words made no sense to him, but the tone was not harsh like the others had been. He opened his eyes cautiously. The light spilling in from the opened doorway burned his eyes and he shut them again quickly. The gruff voice cursed again and, from somewhere, he had a vague notion that this person did that a lot. 

"Shit, Carter, get my glasses off. Put them on him." 

He felt something being placed over his eyes and he stiffened. It was her device again! 

They were here to give him pain. No! No! 

"Sir!" 

He felt himself fall to the ground as his struggles loosened the gruff speaker's grip on him. He cried out as hard stone touched tender bruises and he tried desperately to roll away. But his escape stopped when his throbbing shoulder met with the damp walls again. A strangled noise of frustration broke from of his lips as he realized that there was no escape. 

"It's okay." The gruff voice was back. Closer. He could feel it's breath right over his own face. 

"Open your eyes. Come on." The gruff voice faded a bit as it turned away from him for a moment. 

"No. Let me handle this. It's okay. Just keep an eye out for me. See if the others are ready yet." 

It sounded so familiar. Where had he heard it before? He knew the name for the voice. He...wait...it was...it was... 

"Ja'k?" he croaked out and nearly jumped at the sound of his own voice. It sounded horrible, like the wind wailing through the cracks in a wall. It was barely audible. 

Apparently though, it sounded more like music to this Jack. He could hear the smile, the relief in the voice as the man replied. 

"Yeah It's me. Open your eyes. It's okay." 

"Light..." he said in a small voice, shaking his head weakly. "Hurts..." 

"Carter placed glasses on you. It's okay. Come on. Open them up. You need to see us here." 

"...Dream." 

"No dream." A hand reached out and gripped his shoulder tentatively. "Shh... it's just me... it's okay. Just open your eyes." 

It was like trying to open rusty windows. They didn't open immediately. He had to scrunch his eyes closed before trying and his body tensed automatically, preparing itself for the burning sensation of light so long unseen. But when his eyes finally opened, all he saw was darkness. He gasped and twisted around to see... to try to see anything at all. 

"Easy, easy," Jack's voice came again out of the darkness, his other hand now on his face to still the panicked movements. 

"It's the sunglasses. They're dark, but you should still be able to see the door. D'you see it?" 

He nodded numbly when the faint outline began to appear before his eyes and he relaxed. He could feel Jack's arms slipping behind his back and knees again, ready to lift him. Where are they going? His hand shot out, not to strike this time, but to grab onto anything. His feeble fingers found cloth. Jack's flak jacket. 

"Take it easy. I'm just going to lift you up and get you out of here. Okay?" 

He nodded. It was too hard to speak. 

"Okay. Just hang on tight, Danny and we'll-" 

Wait, what was that? 

He moved his other hand to clutch the jacket more tightly. "Wh't?" 

"Huh? What is it?" 

"Wh't you c-call m...me?" He wanted to hear the name. He *needed* to hear the name. 

Jack's voice sounded very sad. "Danny. I called you Danny. Christ. Your name... it's Daniel Jackson. Do you remember? Doctor Daniel Jackson." 

Tears trickled down his pale face, down the faint stubble of a beard, and he nodded mutely. He had to be sure. He had to be sure it wasn't the... other name that she had called him by. He had to be sure. 

"Danny?" Arms tightened around him, but this time, Daniel knew that these were safe arms. Not the arms of someone here to hurt him. Not their arms. Not even- 

"I..." Daniel whispered, barely audible. He felt Jack tilts his head closer to his face. "I... d-don't want... to stay... h-here... Ja'k... p-please." 

"You're not. You're going home. We're not leaving you here." 

Jack's voice sounded choked, as the grip became even tighter, almost to a point that it hurt - Daniel wasn't complaining. Daniel heard Jack cough awkwardly then, as he turned to the others. 

"Let's go, kids. Let's get him out of here." 

Daniel felt himself moving, cradled in his friend's protective arms. As they stepped through the doorway, Daniel felt air caressing his face for the first time in longer than he could recall, and he panicked. 

Was it a trick? 

"Daniel?" Jack whispered, feeling the tension return to Daniel's body. 

"P-please..." Daniel stuttered faintly. "D-don't leave... me... here again... p-please..." 

His body felt heavy. A great weight was pressing down on his chest, on his eyes, forcing them closed. It was forcing his body to sag against Jack's chest, the colonel's jacket rubbing roughly against his cheek. Spinning him around, pulling at him, the darkness took Daniel into itself, with a promise of relief, and he went to it obediently. 

"What?" Jack asked confused, but Daniel could no longer reply. His head lolled back against the arms that held him and he drifted away. 

* * *

**Part 2**

_"It should be pretty routine, Jack," Daniel commented._

He flipped through the folder's contents, oblivious to the fact that people in the hallway were dodging him, as he walked aimlessly, wandering in all directions. 

"SG-5 found no functioning village... oops, sorry... around the Stargate in P7J973, but the dig site should have some interesting info... pardon me... on what must have happened to them. Strange though... oh sorry." 

Daniel apologized as he bumped into another technician, who barely held on to all the test tubes he was transporting. 

"The village looks fairly recent and yet the fragments we found so far seems to suggest abandonment maybe over a hundred years. I... oh! Excuse me, sorry!" Daniel yelped, nearly tripping as a cart from the labs brushed against him. 

Jack rolled his eyes upward and grabbed Daniel by the elbow to steer him. 

"For crying out loud, Daniel. Will you watch where you're walking?" 

Daniel finally looked up and blinked. 

"What?" 

"Never mind." 

Jack shook his head as he glared at the soldiers who were walking by, looking amused. He thought he heard someone mutter something about a mother, but he wasn't sure. 

"Watch out! Gangway! Excuse us! Coming through!" Jack yelled, half-dragging Daniel through the hallway to their destination. 

"Jack!" Daniel spluttered, as he had to jog to keep up with Jack. The colonel had latched onto his elbow, and was almost pulling him along. 

"Wait! I-" 

"We're here," Jack announced as they reached the lab doors marked Video. 

Daniel glared at his friend, pushing up his glasses with his index finger. 

"Thanks a lot, Jack. I think I left my boots back in C-3!" 

"Look, you were running into every Tom, Dick, and Harry on the hallways back there-" 

"I was not!" Daniel exclaimed. 

"You had your face in that folder. Any closer and I would have had to have scraped it off your face!" Jack grumbled, opening the doors to the lab. 

"You're exaggerating..." Daniel protested as he entered the lab after Jack. "Okay, I admit it, I wasn't really paying attention to where I was going-" 

"Ha!" Jack said triumphantly. 

" **However** ," Daniel stressed the word, glaring at Jack, "that doesn't mean you can start dragging me along like a mop, yelling for everyone to get out of the way!" 

Jack grinned at the image. 

"I wouldn't call it a mop, Jackson. Your hair is too short for that now." 

"Jaack." 

The colonel chuckled. 

"Look. Get your stuff, whatever you need for this mission while I talk to Sanders about-" 

Daniel looked confused. 

"What do you need to talk to Major Sanders for? I thought he was leading the SG-5 team on this mission." 

"He is, but I just want to go over some things with him before the mission." 

Daniel crossed his arms, looking at Jack suspiciously. To his surprise, the colonel actually looked... flustered. 

"What? What?" Jack defended himself. "Sanders needs to be warned about you and your... quirks." 

"Quirks?" Daniel practically squeaked the word out. "What do you mean **quirks**?" 

"Running around without telling anyone where you're going, picking up every rock you see without checking, jumping up to every native who approaches and-" Jack counted them off with his fingers. 

"Jack! It's just a dig! It's not the first time I've been assigned to another team temporarily." Daniel sighed. "I don't think we'll be seeing any natives for me to greet anyway!" 

"Still-" 

"Jack!" 

Daniel waved his arms, throwing them up in frustration. 

"Look, I guess I'm... touched that you're concerned, but I'm very sure it'll be okay. No aliens, no major natural disasters, no-" Daniel stopped when he saw the doubtful look on the colonel's face. "What? You want to put a leash on me, with one end tied to the steel girders back here in the SGC?" 

Jack grinned crookedly. He dropped an arm around Daniel's shoulders as he chuckled. "Nah. We can't sustain the wormhole that long." 

"Jaack." 

The colonel chuckled again, but sobered suddenly as he stepped away from Daniel. 

"Look, we're not there to predict your... unpredictability so you've got to watch out for yourself. Do you hear me?" 

Daniel was taken aback by how serious Jack was. 

"Jack, I-" 

Jack shrugged, trying to make it look like no big deal. 

"All the shit that's been going on, I'm getting a bad feeling about this. That's all." 

"Maybe I should-" Daniel started. 

"No." Jack shook his head. "I'm just feeling paranoid. Just go on your field trip, play nice and bring back some nice rock that you'll bore me to tears with your tales about." 

"Artifact," Daniel corrected his friend with a smile. 

"Whatever." 

Jack grinned as he watched Daniel, who was shaking his head and looking exasperated. Jack half-listened as his friend went on about the differences between a rock and an artifact, all the while watching him gather together the equipment he would need for the mission. 

That would be the last time he saw Daniel. The anthropologist had disappeared soon after the team arrived at P7J973. 

Jack jerked awake and found himself back in the infirmary, back in the private room where Daniel had laid unconscious for the past two days. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and reached behind to a sore muscle on his back. He winced as he tried to massage the kinks out of a back that had been seated in too hard a chair for way too long. 

"I can have one of the nurses bring up a cot for you," a soft voice said from the doorway. 

Turning only his head, since the rest of his body seemed to have melded with the chair, Jack grimaced when he saw Doctor Janet Fraiser standing there with a sympathetic look on her face. 

"I'm fine just where I am, thank you," Jack grumbled, as he shifted again. He winced as he heard a joint pop. 

"Have you eaten yet, colonel?" 

"How're Sanders and the others?" Jack pointedly ignored the question. 

Janet sighed, knowing that Jack was evading the issue again. 

"Major Sanders is still in a coma. We just lost Smith and Tesh. I don't know about Sergeant Stone. He... he might not last the night." 

"Damn," Jack cursed softly, feeling his shoulders sag with the thought. "Then Daniel might be the only one who is able to tell us what happened during those three days." 

Jack rubbed his eyes wearily - they were feeling as though someone had poured sand into them. 

"There's nothing you can do for him right now, colonel," Fraiser said softly. "It will probably be quite some time before Daniel wakes up. He's been dehydrated for a long time, and those burns on his chest and scalp were infected. He needs time to heal and that means keeping him sedated for now, at least until the fever goes down." 

Jack scowled as he listened to the information Janet was giving him. 

"What about his back?" 

"Well, he's lying on his side now so he doesn't aggravate the wounds but..." Janet paused. 

"What?" Jack asked tiredly. 

"I think you shouldn't really concern yourself over the cosmetic details of his injuries, colonel," Janet said softly, seeing the older man stiffen. "His wounds will heal. I'm just concerned with the ones medicine can't reach." 

Jack nodded. 

"I wasn't worried about scarring." He paused. "Will there be scarring?" 

"Probably." Janet's voice was tinged with sadness, both for the man who sat there waiting, for the man who was lying drugged on the bed. She felt for both souls who would have to steel themselves, when the time was right, to face what had happened. 

"Whoever did this to Daniel, made sure that it would hurt, that it would bleed. They wanted the torture to las-" 

"I get the idea," Jack interrupted harshly. "Dammit, you don't have to tell me what those bastards did. I have eyes. Just tell me that the moment he wakes up, it'll be over for him." 

"I think you know the answer to that." 

Jack sighed heavily. "Damn." 

"But it will be over for him, maybe not now, but later." 

Janet studied the grim set of Jack's jaw, the way his eyes watched Daniel intently while he was sleeping, and the way Jack's hands were clenched into tight fists. 

"I think you'll make sure of it. Won't you... Jack?" 

"I shouldn't need to be worrying about that," Jack said softly. "He shouldn't even be here. I shouldn't be here cursing everything that's holy right now, wondering why life could be so unfair to a guy who would never even try to hurt anyone deliberately." 

"He'll be okay." 

The doctor ventured closer and dared to place a gentle hand on Jack's shoulder. No one else had tried to approach the colonel for those two days while he had sat a vigil over his friend. Even Sam and Teal'c couldn't get the colonel to leave. His rigid back basically screamed for everyone to back off. 

"I mean, he made it this far, right?" 

"For a while there," Jack confessed. "We didn't even think he was going to make it at all." 

* * *

**Part 3**

_"Colonel O'Neill," a voice from behind spoke, halting Jack in his tracks._

He turned around, careful of the burden he was carrying. Lieutenant Johnson of SG-3 lagged behind him, his arms full with the stretcher that carried Major Sanders. 

"We're going to need to stop for a second, colonel," Johnson said, glancing behind him to his own men. "Smith's getting worse. We're gonna need to get some fluids into him." 

Jack nodded wearily in agreement. 

"It'll still be a while before we reach the Stargate. Carter," Jack called out. Sam came up from front guard immediately. "You and Tomes search for a water source. Teal'c said he heard running water earlier. We'll make a rest stop here for the time being." 

Sam nodded, pausing only to gently brush back a stray strand from Daniel's clammy forehead, before silently cutting through the brush, away from them. Two other soldiers, Booker and Sterns, took over guarding the area, keeping an eye out for guards who might be still pursuing them. 

The colonel tracked her journey only until she disappeared into the landscape. He then carefully turned away and was startled to find Teal'c standing right there. 

"May I be of assistance, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked solemnly, extending his hands out to offer to take over his burden. 

Jack smiled wearily and shrugged. 

"I don't know if you can pry him off of me," he remarked, nodding towards the claw-like grip Daniel had on his jacket. 

So, instead of taking Daniel, Teal'c merely helped Jack sit down on the ground, carefully positioning Daniel between them. They used Jack's pack as a pillow, both their jackets placed over his frail body to ward off the chill. Daniel's head lolled back, against Teal'c's thigh and the Jaafa pushed the young man's head back with a gentleness Jack had not imagined possible from him. 

A shadow loomed over them and Teal'c started. 

"Whoa, it's just me," Johnson's dark face came into view. He frowned down at Daniel. "How's he doing?" 

"Bad," Jack said tersely, not yet removing the two fingers he had placed over Daniel's carotid artery. "He's burning up right now." 

Daniel murmured something, brow furrowing worriedly as if he was picking up on Jack's concern. Jack squeezed Daniel on his good shoulder and watched as the anthropologist sighed softly before drifting back to sleep again. 

"Smith might not make it," Johnson said softly, his eyes going back to the men laid out on the stretchers, back to where his own team members were desperately attending to their fallen comrades. "Shit. This was supposed to be a milk run operation. What the hell happened to them?" 

Jack narrowed his eyes. Three days. It had taken three days of scouring the planet before they had found the underground complex. Three days before they were able to return with SG-3, break in and find their comrades. They had been locked in separate cells like animals, barely conscious enough to realize that they had been rescued. 

Three days. 

Damn it all to hell, Jack thought. 

"It was most unfortunate that we were unable to extract a prisoner for questioning," Teal'c said coldly. He looked like he had wanted to do the... questioning himself. 

Johnson shook his head. "Damnedest thing I ever saw. They outright shot themselves rather than be captured." The team leader's eyes darkened with the memory. 

"I didn't recognize the symbols on their foreheads, Teal'c," Jack murmured. "Did you?" 

Teal'c shook his head. "I regret I do not. It is a symbol I have not seen before." 

"Tomes didn't recognize it as Egyptian," Johnson said, referring to his team linguist, who had left with Carter in search of water. 

"Sir!" A voice said from behind. 

The three men turned their heads to see a tall soldier named Anderson, his face stained with camouflage paint, waving frantically at them. He ran up to them, stopping a bit away from Daniel. 

"Smith's awake, sir." 

"Teal'c," Jack said urgently, easing Daniel over to the Jaafa. Teal'c just nodded, taking the bundle carefully. Jack took one last look at Daniel before forcing himself to follow Johnson over to the other men. 

A bloody face with glazed gray eyes, stared back unblinkingly at the men hovering over him. 

"S-sir?" 

"Relax, lieutenant," Jack murmured, kneeling down besides the soldier. "It's SG-1 and SG-3." 

"G-god... wh... wh't kept you?" Smith breathed. 

Johnson sat on his heels. "I wish we'd gotten here sooner, Tom. I really do." 

"T-two weeks..." Smith croaked out, tremors racking his body, his hand shooting out to grasp Johnson by the arm. "W-we tried... ever... everyt-thing... b-but we c-couldn't... too m-many gu'rds..." 

Johnson and Jack looked at each other puzzled. Jack mouthed "Two weeks?" to the other man, who shrugged. 

"Smith," Jack leaned closer anxiously. "Did you see who they were?" 

"N-no... D-doc... Jackson... m-might have..." Smith coughed harshly, hunching over. Anderson grabbed the soldier by the shoulders, bracing him. 

"Easy, Tom," Anderson soothed, shooting a worried glance over to his CO. "Man, the things you do to back out of being my best man at next week's wedding." 

Smith laughed, though the sound was more like a sob than a chuckle. 

"I... t'ld you... h'te speeches... And'rson..." Anderson laughed too, though it sounded a little strained. 

"Smith," Jack spoke again. "What did you mean Doctor Jackson might have seen?" 

"The... the gu'rds... kept takin' Ja'kson out... ev'ryday... he... shit!" 

Smith's back arched as pain raced through his body. 

"Tom!" Anderson exclaimed, bracing the soldier down firmly. Jack cursed - he tried to grab Smith's ankles, to hold him still, but it wasn't necessary because suddenly, Smith groaned. His body shuddered and then stilled. 

"Smith?" Johnson whispered, tentatively shaking the soldier's arm, but getting no response. He checked the pulse. Sighing, Johnson rocked back on his heels. "Still with us." 

Jack didn't say one word, as he brooded over what Smith had told him. 

"They targeted Doctor Jackson," Anderson voiced Jack's thought aloud. "What the hell did they want with him?" 

"I don't know," Jack muttered, "but they won't have him or anyone else. They'll have to walk over my bloody bones before they can." 

"O'Neill," Teal'c called out softly. 

Jack and Johnson turned around in time to see Carter and Tomes return with water. The two soldiers set out to distribute it, Jack taking the canteen Carter handed to him and going over to Daniel. 

"Teal'c, sit him up," Jack said quietly, kneeling down once more by his friend. 

He bit his lower lip to stop the urge to scream with rage when he saw the stark contrast between white skin and dark bruises. 

"We've got to clean some of these burns a bit." 

Jack focused on the angry welts running along the temples, disappearing into Daniel's hair. Jack silently thanked whoever it was up there, whoever was keeping Daniel unconscious so the young man wouldn't feel this. But then he remembered that whoever he might be thanking up there might also be considered to have had a hand in putting Daniel in the situation in the first place. 

But the blame couldn't be shouldered solely by some powerful being. 

Cool water trickled out of the canteen's mouth, washing over Daniel's hair. Rivulets of blood mixed with water flowed down from hidden wounds, washing down Daniel's face, making it into a frightening red mask. Jack swore softly, but didn't stop until he was certain the wounds were washed clean. He carefully parted the damp strands of Daniel's hair, wincing inwardly at the sores he found there. Not daring to wrap anything over those wounds, Jack had to content himself with washing the burns, with trying to cool them down a little. 

"Sir." 

Carter, done with the others, hunched down by her teammates. She cast her eyes towards where Daniel lay, making a sound that she promptly squelched. 

"H-here's some more water." 

Jack admired her restraint. The colonel himself felt the urge to begin ranting, to start throwing things, breaking things. Anything was better than just sitting here like a lump, nothing more than a cushion for his friend to lean on. 

"O'Neill," Teal'c's soft voice cut through Jack's thoughts. "He appears to be waking." 

Shit, Jack thought as he looked down at Daniel, where he was resting his head in the hollow of Jack's shoulder. He could feel Daniel's fingers curling subconsciously, as if feeling for the cloth he had been clutching onto before. When Daniel's fingers found nothing, the young man stiffened, and his eyes flew open. 

"Whoa, easy there," Jack soothed as he felt the young man buck in his arms. Teal'c and Carter leaned forward anxiously. "It's okay. We're right here." 

"Ja'k?" Daniel whispered. He coughed, shuddering at the pain that ensued. 

The older man nodded. "Right here. We're all here." 

"H'me?" Daniel whispered desperately. His fingers found Jack's flak jacket again and weakly curled around the fabric. 

"W-we're almost there, Daniel," Sam's voice broke a bit. She took a deep breath before she continued. "Do... are you thirsty?" 

"Y-yes." 

"Teal'c," Jack said quietly. 

The Jaafa nodded, understanding immediately. He took hold of Daniel, carefully positioning the man so that he would lean against the Jaafa's sturdy chest. One arm was braced over Daniel's chest to keep him still, the other on Daniel's cheek to keep his head upright. 

"Small sips," Jack warned as he tilted the canteen slowly to Daniel's cracked lips. 

He watched as Daniel opened his mouth, letting the cool water trickle down his dry throat. Daniel tensed, suddenly coughing. 

"Daniel!" Sam called out, reaching out to brace her friend. 

Daniel whimpered, curling over Teal'c's arm as coughs racked his body into convulsions. The Jaafa, alarmed, shuffled away a bit to rub his hand up and down Daniel's back. But it didn't help and the young man's face was beginning to turn red from his exertions. 

Jack nearly fell when Daniel crashed against him, his tremors literally breaking him free from Teal'c's grip. Automatically, Jack's arms flew up and around his friend. Jack found himself murmuring... anything and everything... as he rubbed Daniel's back, his hands moving in small circles. Finally, he felt Daniel begin to calm down, moaning as he crumpled into Jack's hold. 

"Danny?" Jack asked softly. 

Shaking his head, Daniel didn't look up. Jack carefully turned Daniel until he was facing up and Carter gasped. 

"Sir," Sam said, her eyes glued to Jack's uniform. 

Jack looked down and froze at the sight of the blood staining his jacket. He opened his mouth, about to say something, when Daniel moaned again. 

"It's... not tr'e..." Daniel whimpered. 

"What?" Sam came closer, not quite hearing him. "Daniel?" 

"Ja'k?" Daniel looked up, his eyes unfocused, still looked anxious. "Not... t-true?" 

"I don't understand, Daniel," Jack answered softly. 

Daniel's face crumpled, silent sobs heaving painfully in his chest. 

"N-not true? P-please, Ja'k... it's... n-not true?" 

"O'Neill." 

"Sir." 

The two looked at Jack worriedly, but the man couldn't think of anything to say to reassure Daniel. 

So Jack lied to him. 

"No, Danny." Jack tightened his grip on the young man. "It's not true." 

"P-promise?" Daniel whispered, his body visibly relaxing. 

Jack bowed his head slightly. 

"Promise. I promise, Danny. It's not true." 

The young man buried his face in Jack's uniform, shuddering as he tried vainly to hold on to the cloth. Jack closed his eyes, trying to calm himself, trying to tell himself that this wasn't Iraq. That this wasn't some fresh faced soldier dying in his arms, listening to him lie about how they would break out of prison soon. 

This is different. It's not the same. 

Jack kept repeating this to himself, over and over again, even as he was placing one shaky hand over Daniel's fingers, squeezing them so that they could clutch the jacket more tightly. 

"Just hold on all you want, Daniel," Jack said softly. "It's just a little bit longer." 

"'K..." Daniel sighed. 

To their horror, Daniel shivered once and then became still. 

"Jack?" 

The colonel shuddered, pulling back from his memories, from reliving the horror of trying to coax a weak heart to start pumping again, from remembering how that heart fluttered and stopped again when they finally reached the Stargate. Those two times had nearly made Jack's own heart stop as he had begun CPR, pressing down on Daniel's chest almost frantically, Carter doing the breathing for Daniel. It resulted in two cracked ribs, but Daniel was still stubbornly clinging on to life. 

Janet stepped in front of Jack. 

"Colonel?" She bent down a little, reaching out to shake him by the shoulder. "Jack?" 

Startled, Jack tensed, his arm whipping up to knock her hand away. Janet gasped, staggering back to avoid the blow. Her soft cry brought Jack back to awareness. 

"Wha- Oh shit." 

Jack stood up, grabbing Janet before she could fall. 

"You okay?" 

"I should be asking you that." 

Janet composed herself, smoothing out her white lab coat, aware she was using the gesture to hide her shaking hands. 

"Crap, I was thinking." Jack swore when he saw the doctor's trembling hands stick themselves into her pockets. 

"Very powerful thinking, colonel," the doctor joked lightly. 

Jack scowled but didn't comment on that. 

"Get some rest," Janet said softly. "Like I said before, it'll be some time before Daniel will come to. I can send someone to get you when he does." 

She pressed on even when Jack wearily shook his head. 

"You can't keep this up. He's going to need your help later, but I'm afraid by then you won't be much help to him." 

Jack was opening his mouth to say something when a red faced soldier burst in through the infirmary's double doors. 

"Colonel O'Neill! We have a situation here! ! Smith... and... Major Carter-" 

* * *

**Part 4**

Before Jack could ask what was going on, he could hear shouting coming from down the hallway. With one last look at Daniel, Jack raced out of the double doors to find the source of the noise. Janet and the soldier were behind him. 

"What happened?" the doctor demanded as she followed Jack down the hall, turning the corner. 

Vaguely, she noted that they were heading for the morgue. Already a few soldiers who had heard the commotion were rushing in the same direction to help. 

"Major Carter had got the toxicology reports from Doctor Collins. She was going to bring them over to you when Smith suddenly got up from the table and grabbed he-" 

"What?" Fraiser exclaimed. "Smith?" 

Jack skidded to a halt in front of them. 

"I thought you said Smith was dead!" Jack demanded. 

"He... he was. He suffered massive internal injuries and went into cardiac arrest on the table. We tried for over ten minutes. There was no brain activity, no pulse, no-" 

Fraiser was at a loss for words. 

Another crash was heard and suddenly a soldier came bursting out of the doors leading to the morgue. He stumbled slightly before dropping to the ground. 

"Then who," Jack grated out, pointing to the scene with a jerk of his thumb, "did that?" 

Not bothering to wait for a response, Jack reached the morgue, flinging open the doors as, back in the corridor, Fraiser was helping out the felled soldier. 

"Carter!" Jack shouted as he ducked behind the lab table. He wrinkled his nose at the sour smells of chemicals from shattered bottles. "You okay?" 

"Not... really, sir." 

Jack looked over in the direction of her voice, from behind his shelter, and tensed. 

Carter was standing there stiffly, immobilized by a dead man. 

"Tom! What the hell are you doing?" 

Sergeant Anderson was there, his face a mix of shock and concern. Jack could imagine how the man must have been feeling. To grieve for a good friend, to believe him dead, then to find him alive and holding someone hostage.... 

"Tom! Look at me! It's-" 

"You keep away from me!" Smith shouted, tightening his grip on Carter's neck. 

His eyes were glazed, but were darting wildly at the soldiers surrounding him. His face was a frightening mass of purple bruises. He was holding a broken beaker with his other hand. Jack waved the other soldiers back with his hand and a shake of his head. Anderson paused, torn, but finally another soldier jerked him back. Jack sighed. Last thing he wanted now was to have Smith panic. 

Even though technically, the man was dead. 

"You get away from me!" Smith bellowed as he saw one of the soldiers take another step. 

_Okay... maybe not a dead man_ , Jack thought to himself. 

He stood up from behind where he had been sheltering, his hands in the air to show he was hiding no weapons. Smith started when he saw the colonel. 

"Lieutenant," Jack said carefully. "What's going on here?" 

"I'm not dead!" Smith said in a panicked voice. 

"I can see that." Jack replied calmly. "You certainty don't look dead to me." 

Smith swung his arm wildly. 

"They were going to cut me open! They didn't hear me screaming for them to stop!" 

Wincing, Jack eyed the surgical tools on the tray, thankfully still out of the crazed man's reach. 

"But they didn't do it, did they?" 

"That's why you guys left us?" Smith asked, in a distressed voice. 

His arm had begun to shake. Carter winced as the grip around her throat began to tighten. 

"You guys thought we were all dead and just left us!" 

"But we didn't leave you behind." 

The colonel tried to take another step closer. Smith jumped and waved his makeshift weapon towards Jack now. Carter grunted as the chokehold began to increase. She coughed as she felt her oxygen supply beginning to falter and grabbed weakly at the soldier's massive arm. Her eyes stayed glued on the colonel's face, waiting for a signal, a sign. 

Jack, realizing that time was growing short, dared to take another step. 

"We came back, Smith. Remember? We got you out of that place." 

"T-two weeks." Smith stuttered. "It... we... we were in that hellhole for two weeks!" 

"S-smith," Carter croaked out before Jack could stop her. "You were missing three days. Not... urk!" 

"You're lying!" Smith raged, his pale face flushed now. "You're lying! I was there! Not you! You weren't there when they came every goddamn night, dragging us out like animals, beating us with their sticks, hearing him scream!" 

_Who?_ Jack thought as he slowly took another step. "Major's telling you the truth, Lieutenant. You were gone three days." 

"You w-weren't there..." Smith whispered as he continued to back away from the circle of men. "You didn't hear us... hear him... screaming for help... God, we tried everything... even h-hanging ourselves but those bastards," Smith swallowed, his body beginning to shake. "Those b-bastards wouldn't let us die. And you left us!" 

Smith's eyes suddenly flashed, focussing on Jack. 

"I-I saw you! You left us there to die!" 

Jack was taken aback. "Wha-?" 

Smith began screaming again. 

"Don't lie! I saw you! He was screaming for you to help him! He kept calling your name! I heard him every night until his voice gave out! Every goddamn night! And you came and left him there! Left all of us there to rot in that hell! You!" 

With that, Smith let go of Carter and lunged for Jack. The woman stumbled weakly, falling down hard onto her knees. 

The older man, too surprised at first to react, was thrown back by the force of Smith's weight upon him. Before he could roll away, Jack felt hands around his throat. He threw up his own hands to grasp at the wrists to try and pull them away. Two soldiers jumped on top of Smith, trying to pull him off, but with a roar, the lieutenant threw them off. Jack wrenched away and tried to take a step back when Smith tackled him. The two crashed into the cabinets hard. On impact, Jack heard something snap in his chest and he grunted. 

"You! You just walked out and left us there!" Smith screamed, his pupils like pinpricks. 

Jack could see the other soldiers trying to physically remove him, not daring to draw their gun on their comrade. 

"Tom! Let him go, you're killing him!" Anderson shouted, grabbing for an arm. 

What the sergeant got instead was a fist to his mouth. Jack tried to take advantage of the distraction and roll away, but Smith's grip was surprisingly like iron. 

_Pretty strong for a dead guy_ , Jack thought faintly as spots began to dance in front of his eyes. 

He tried to push the body away by kicking out his feet, but for some reason, his legs were like butter. The shouting above him faded into whispers, the fluorescent lights dimmed to shadows and his hands began to slip. 

Then suddenly, there was air. 

Jack coughed, gasping as he suddenly found himself able to breathe. The weight that was on his chest and the impossibly strong grip on his throat were gone. He blinked blearily and saw a worried Fraiser to his left, Carter to his right, and Teal'c looming above him. 

"Are you alright, O'Neill?" the Jaafa asked worriedly, still holding on the ranting soldier in a headlock. 

He stood there calmly as the soldier clawed at his arms, twisting and kicking without jarring the alien at all. 

"Colonel?" Fraiser tried to help him up. "How are you feeling?" 

"...Peachy," Jack managed before he passed out. 

* * *

**Part 5**

_The cell reeked of decay and sweat, it's stone walls barely muffling the sounds of screaming and begging from the other cellmates. He sat there, in the corner, waiting for the same shadow to pass by, stop by his door, and shove the plate of food through the little door._

During his imprisonment, he had contemplated using that slot on the edge of the door, perhaps to grab one of the guards by the ankles and trip them, to maybe try and grab their keys. But he had tried stretching his hand out and all he had got was a vicious stomp to his hand, so hard that his hand had been left throbbing for days. 

Or was it weeks? 

He couldn't tell any more. He was too tired to scratch any more marks on the walls, which he had been doing to try and keep up with the transitions from day to night. But he knew that it had been long. The only thing that kept him alive, kept him burning with determination to escape, was the thought of who had left him behind. 

"T-they here?" a weak voice asked. 

He looked down at his lap, to the frail, painfully young face resting there. Blue eyes that barely saw him blinked wearily. 

"No," He replied, his own voice cracking from thirst, from anger- 

From fear. 

Yes. He knew fear now. It was the feeling of not knowing, the feeling of helplessness, the feeling of hands shaking of their own accord. 

It tasted like bile rising up in his throat, like dry lips that hadn't tasted cool clean water in a long time. 

He knew now that he didn't like fear. He much preferred hate. 

"D-do... do you think they've... g-given up?" 

He looked down again, his eyes shuttered to hide the hate in them. 

"No." 

"I... It's been so l-long..." 

"They're looking for us," he said simply. 

The head on his lap nodded weakly. 

"Of c-course... sorry..." 

"It's okay." 

He had to be the strong one here, for those who were still left. 

"I'm s-scared." 

The trembling admission stopped him from making his usual replies. He paused, wondering how to respond. To admit it himself, would mean to let that sickening taste of fear back into his mouth, letting it to overwhelm him. 

"They're coming," he said dully, the script too stale for him to inject some hope into it. 

Nevertheless, the words eased the lines of pain on the younger man's face and he curled up onto his side, head still on his lap and went to sleep. 

And each and every day, he said the same lines, said the same lies, until that young man died. 

"Colonel O'Neill?" a soft voice asked, hand on his shoulder, anchoring him back to the present. 

Jack opened his eyes, half expecting his surroundings to be dark and damp. When he saw fluorescent lights instead, he blinked, and his mind flashed back to- 

"Smith." 

The colonel tried to sit up, only to find that he was on a hospital bed, his shirt gone and a brace wrapped tightly round his chest. Jack stared at it stupidly, wondering what had happened. 

"You cracked a rib, sir," the soft voice spoke again. 

Jack turned his head and saw Carter there, seated to his left. She smiled at him, looking relieved to see that Jack looked like he was alert. 

"Where's Smith?" Jack croaked out. 

He was surprised to hear his voice sound so harsh. Then he looked back at Carter, saw her reddened neck and remembered Smith's hands on his throat. 

Jack also remembered his words. 

_"Don't lie! I saw you! He was screaming for you to help him! He kept calling your name! I heard him every night until his voice gave out! Every goddamn night! And you came and left him there! Left all of us there to rot in that hell! You!"_

"Where's Smith?" Jack repeated, eyes searching the infirmary. 

They fell upon Daniel instead and Jack swallowed. For a moment there, another face superimposed itself over Daniel's, but when Jack squinted it wavered, returning to the pale features of the anthropologist. 

"Teal'c's with him right now," Carter explained, not realizing that her CO's mind was elsewhere now. "Janet needed all the help she could get to restrain him. The tranquilizer she gave him wasn't enough and-" 

Jack swung his legs around and was off the bed before Carter could stop him. 

"Sir!" Carter stretched out her hands to catch him, but Jack waved her off. 

"I'm okay." 

Jack was glad to see his shirt hanging on a hook by the bed. Slowly, he pulled his arms through the sleeves of his shirt with a wince. 

"I just want answers. Like how a dead guy can get up and start walking like that." 

"That's what I like to know, Colonel." 

Janet walked in with Teal'c and General Hammond. 

"Sir," Jack greeted the general. 

"Colonel O'Neill," Hammond returned, eyeing the man critically. "Should you even be up?" 

Janet sighed. 

"Could I even keep him down?" 

Shrugging, Jack grimaced at the dull ache in his chest and mentally reminded himself to never do that again. 

"Where's Smith?" 

"Isolation," Fraiser told him, writing something down on her clipboard. "That tranquilizer is burning out of his system so fast... We had to remove the beds and furniture just in case-" 

"Doc," Jack interrupted, "no offense, but I think the more important question is why we even needed to do that in the first place. We were already saying our good-byes to a good man when he suddenly wakes up... different." 

"I don't know," Janet confessed. "We've haven't been able to calm him down enough to get a blood sample. We tried to get a jacket on him to immobilize him but he was too violent. Teal'c barely was able to hold on to him long enough for us to move him to isolation." 

General Hammond thought about this for a moment. 

"Do you think there is a connection between this and their capture?" 

He paused. The General already knew the answer and, by the grim looks on the others' faces, they had come up with the same conclusion. 

"He'll exhaust himself soon and with that large dose of tranquilizers I gave him," Janet said quietly, "I'll be able to take another blood sample." 

"And find out why the dead are walking," Jack finished. 

He turned his head over to the bed a few rows away. Jack's eyes narrowed as he focused on Daniel's still figure. 

"How's Daniel doing?" 

"If his temperature keeps rising like that-" The doctor didn't finish. "Sanders hasn't waken up yet either." 

"Two weeks," Sam said abruptly. "Smith... back there, he was shouting about two weeks. Sir?" 

The Captain turned to Jack questioningly. 

"I don't understand it either, Carter," Jack murmured. "They were gone for three days, not two weeks." 

"It could have been a ploy," General Hammond said in a voice tinged with memory. "By whoever did this. They could have tricked them into thinking it was longer than it really was. To wear down their defenses." 

Teal'c nodded. "Perhaps to break down their resolve. In order to gain the information they require in the smallest amount of time." 

"But what information?" Sam protested "Smith... none of them... mentioned that they were interrogated, just..." She swallowed. "Just tortured." 

"They might not have remembered." Jack crossed his arms in front of his chest. "It wouldn't be the first time." Jack's eyes darkened for some reason. "Physical pain doesn't just reveal themselves in bruises and scars alone." 

Fraiser glanced over to Jack but made no comment. 

"Smith..." Sam hesitated, wondering if it was worth mentioning at all. "He said he saw you there, sir." 

"Could have been a delusion when they were imprisoned," Jack muttered, his mind elsewhere with memories. 

He glanced around the infirmary, half expecting it to suddenly shroud into darkness. Jack could almost hear voices, the sound of screaming - the colonel wasn't really sure if they were from his memories or from his imagining what Daniel must have gone through. 

"Or maybe another trick of the enemy," Teal'c's voice rumbled. 

"Yeah, but we won't know that until Daniel wakes-" 

A weak voice, so soft that it was barely audible, but when it spoke, everyone froze. 

"Ja'k?" 

* * *

Jack's feet turned the colonel around before he realized he had even reacted at all. He gaped at the bed across the distance that separated them, and saw Daniel's head turning weakly. The young man must have heard Jack's voice and was trying to locate it. 

"Ja'k?" Daniel's voice was growing more confused. 

"Here." 

Jack got there before anyone else could. He sat down on the chair beside the bed and leaned closer so Daniel could see him. 

"Hey there." 

Daniel blinked, and visibly relaxed when he focused on Jack's face. 

"Ja'k." 

The older man grinned, his relief evident. 

"Aren't you going to say anything else besides that, Jackson?" 

Janet stepped in at that point. 

"No he isn't, Colonel. Daniel's going to stay quiet while I check on his vitals." 

She smiled gently at the anthropologist, brushing back damp strands of hair away from his forehead. Daniel just looked back at her with dazed eyes. 

"Glad you're back with us, Daniel." 

She nodded towards a nurse, who approached the others to usher them out. 

Reluctantly, the group turned to leave Janet alone with her examination, but Daniel's eyes widened in panic. His hand flashed out and grabbed Jack's sleeve before the colonel could leave. 

"Doc?" 

Jack stopped then, looking down at the fingers which were tightly curled around his sleeve, refusing to let go. 

Janet just nodded, her eyes sympathetic, as she continued with her checkup. 

Jack sat down again, patting Daniel's hand absently as he watched Janet check his friend's temperature. Jack studied Daniel, who was staring at the ceiling with a frown. 

"Ja'k?" Daniel whispered softly. 

"Yeah." 

"Wh't?" Daniel swallowed, trying to speak clearly. 

"What, Daniel?" Jack eyed Janet, who had stopped her ministrations. 

The young man's frown deepened as he tried to gather his thoughts. Unconsciously, Daniel's fingers tightened around Jack's sleeve. The colonel leaned forward, concerned. 

"Wh't happened?" Daniel whispered, looking puzzled. 

Jack was stunned. 

"You don't know?" He lowered his voice, exchanging a worried look with Janet. "You don't remember?" 

"M-mission?" Daniel guessed. He bit his lower lip as he thought it out. "P9T172? No... came home..." Daniel grew more and more confused. "Ja'k?" 

The colonel didn't know how to tell Daniel. He just sat there, his mouth slightly open at this new piece of information. 

"Daniel... that was two weeks ago." Janet took charge instead. She eyed Jack worriedly as she gave Daniel the news. 

"Two...weeks..." Daniel repeated. His eyes widened and he turned to Jack anxiously. "Ja'k?" 

"She's right, Daniel." Jack felt the fingers twist the sleeve's fabric. He patted the hand once more. "That was two weeks ago." 

"I..." Daniel's eyes wide with bewilderment. He began to struggle to sit up. 

"Daniel, you need to lie still. You shouldn't be-" Janet started to say when the young man cried out softly in pain. 

One hand automatically went over his stomach, while he curled up on his side. His face turned gray and for a moment, it looked like he had stopped breathing. 

Daniel?" Jack got up hastily, knocking the chair over in his alarm. 

"Hurts..." Daniel gasped out as Janet reached out to the medical tray for a syringe. "Back...stomach..." 

"Doc-" Jack trailed helplessly as Janet inserted the needle into the bottle, filling the tube with clear liquid. 

"He had internal injuries and the stitches in his back are still-" Janet froze when Daniel tensed suddenly at the sight of the needle. "Daniel?" 

She came closer, needle still balanced in her hand. "It's just something for the pain." 

Daniel paled to a point that he was almost transparent. He shook at the sight of the needle. 

"No," he wheezed, one hand jerking the sleeve closer to him, unaware of the fact that Jack was being pulled down along with it. 

The older man tried to reassure Daniel. 

"Danny, it's okay. It's just to make you feel better-" 

"No..." Daniel screwed his eyes shut. "No...no needles...please, Ja'k." 

"Why?" Jack whispered, hunched over so low now that he was practically hovering over Daniel's face. 

"D-don't know..." Daniel whimpered, shuffling away, the lines of pain etched on his face revealing how agonizing the movement was to his back. 

"Keep away... please..." 

His voice cracked and Daniel shrank back, almost as if he was trying to hide behind Jack's arm. 

Janet caught the helpless look on the colonel's face. 

"Okay, Daniel. No needles." 

The young man sighed. Jack lowered his head, whispering into Daniel's ear. Whatever it was, it looked to Janet that it was working. Daniel nodded silently and shifted slightly away from Jack, allowing the older man to ease him back down on the bed. Daniel shook his head. 

"How l-long was I... out?" 

"Two days," Janet said quietly. "You've been very sick, Daniel." 

Daniel nodded, wincing as the tightness of the wounds pulling at his side and back testified to that. 

"I... I don't remember... Ja'k! I don't... w-who was w-with me?" Daniel's other hand grabbed onto Jack's wrist now. 

"Just rest, Danny," Jack said numbly. "We'll talk about it later." 

"Colonel-" 

"We'll talk about it **later**." 

Jack shot a glare at the doctor. Surprised, Janet held her tongue. He pulled up the blankets over Daniel, tucking them around the shivering body. 

"I'm going to talk to Doc now, okay Daniel? I'll be outside. Just rest. We'll talk later." 

Daniel's blue eyes stared right at Jack then, and he flinched inwardly. Those eyes looked at him as if Daniel was dissecting his thoughts, checking to see what other lies were hidden away in the colonel's mind. Jack kept the calm smile on his lips and stared back steadily at his friend. 

This seemed to reassure the anthropologist, and he nodded meekly. Daniel shifted, moaning softly at the pain but when Janet tried to approach him with the painkiller, he shook his head adamantly. So Jack sat there, letting Daniel's hands twist and wring his sleeve to the point that Jack thought he was going to tear it off of his uniform. The colonel could feel Janet's eyes on him too, boring into him at the back of his head. 

Only when the fingers stopped fidgeting, did Jack dare to pry them loose from his uniform. He tucked the slack hand back under the blankets and sighed heavily. 

"Colonel O'Neill," Janet said softly. 

"Give me a second, will ya?" Jack answered wearily. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

He rubbed his face with both hands, mentally telling himself that the worst part was over. Daniel was awake. That was all that mattered. Then Jack squared his shoulders and stood up. He looked down at his friend once more, then forced himself to turn around and walk out. 

_"Please..." Daniel begged the eyes glowing in the darkness. He shivered violently. It was so cold. "I can't..."_

"But you will..." The voice held mild amusement at the sight of Daniel struggling. "You will... otherwise..." 

Daniel cried out as another jolt shot up his spine, setting every nerve, every muscle on fire. His hands bunched into fists, clenched so tightly that his nails dug bloody gashes into his palm. That miniscule pain was nothing compared to the wave after wave of shocks that ran throughout his body, stealing every breath he managed to draw in before the next jolt. 

Gasping, Daniel crumpled to the floor, his arms hanging painfully from the chains attached to the ceiling above him. His knees fell short of the ground, but he was too drained to even try and stand. 

"Once more," the voice said coldly. 

"N-no..." Daniel whimpered. "I won't..." 

Another jolt. This time to the bottoms of his feet. Daniel jerked his legs up but was unable to hold the stance, and they came slamming down on the stone floor. Hot met cold and Daniel screamed. 

"Aren't you going to tell us that you mean us no harm?" the voice mocked. 

Daniel's head hung down, his chest heaving as it struggled to get air in. It seemed like each time he tried to gulp in some air, the pain just pushed it back out again. He swallowed, feeling the bile building up in his throat. 

"Aren't you going to tell us that you're peaceful explorers?" the voice asked again, in a hateful tone. 

Looking up, Daniel tried to see through the darkness, but all he saw was the eyes. He closed his eyes as he heard muffled screams coming from outside the room. 

"They're dying." 

"N-no..." Daniel moaned. 

"Because you refused." 

Daniel's teeth chattered. 

"W-why are you doing this?" 

He made a feeble attempt to stand, but as soon as his feet set flat on the floor, he gasped. The scalding burns made him shriek with pain when they made contact with the ground. The voice laughed. 

"I do this because you refused. They will suffer because you refused. It is not doing you any good. He will die anyway. Your refusal means nothing." 

Another jolt. This one to the back of his neck. Daniel arched his back, screaming. The chains dug at his wrists, rubbing till they were raw and bleeding. He twisted his body, desperately trying to avoid the hot jabs from the needles surrounding him, the bolts of fire from their pricks. All his efforts achieved were the needles digging deeper into his flesh, drawing blood from him along with his screams. 

Then suddenly, it stopped. 

The chains abruptly released and Daniel fell to the ground, his arms barely around his head in time before he slammed onto the stone. He lay there, in a crumpled heap, wheezing, shivering. 

Crying. 

The voice became gentle. 

"I do not wish to give you pain, but you leave me no choice. He has to die. You must not refuse." 

Hands reached down to touch his head, caressing the temples. Daniel flinched away, moaning. Softer the voice grew still as it continued. 

"I ask again. Yes or no?" 

Daniel swallowed, remembering what had happened the last time that he refused. He knew what would come next and he silently told himself that it was a small price to pay. 

"Yes or no?" 

"N... n-no." 

The hands pulled back. The voice grew hard. "You will say yes." 

Daniel shook his head mutely. 

"You will, or I will kill them all, one by one, in front of you." 

"W-why are you doing this? Who are you?" Daniel whispered. 

He lifted his head a bit, squinting hard into the darkness, trying to see. 

"Do you not remember?" the soft voice said as light footsteps approached him. "It has not been that long." 

A light shone down from the ceiling and Daniel grimaced as the brightness hurt his eyes. Blinking, he watched a figure step into the light. Teary eyes tried to focus and gradually Daniel was able to see the person. He saw the slim waist where the jewel gleamed under the spotlight, the soft slope of shoulders and the- 

No. It couldn't be. 

No! 

Daniel woke with a scream. 

* * *

"So he doesn't remember anything at all?" Sam whispered as they stood outside the infirmary in a small circle. "Nothing at all?" 

Teal'c silently digested all this, his ears tilted towards the private room to keep a listening ear out for Daniel. The Jaafa did not like this feeling of helplessness, listening to others talk in medical terms he couldn't even begin to comprehend. So he set himself to guard the vulnerable anthropologist, even if it was just by listening. 

Fraiser shook her head, her eyes glancing over to Jack. 

"In severe trauma cases such as this, it's not surprising that the memory would be blocked out, as a way of... protection." 

She sighed. Sticking her hands in her lab coat pockets, Janet suddenly felt very tired. 

"It could come back now or much later on or..." 

"It wouldn't come back at all," Jack finished. He didn't look like he considered the latter was such a bad alternative. 

General Hammond frowned. 

"Doctor Jackson may be our only link to what happened to SG-5, colonel. As much as I would like to leave Doctor Jackson alone with this, we have to find out who this new threat is." 

Jack scowled, turning his head slightly towards the door. General Hammond softened. 

"I'm not a heartless man, colonel," Hammond continued, "I'm not suggesting we ask Doctor Jackson now, but it's inevitable." 

"We know that, sir," Sam jumped in. "We just... I don't even know if I want to learn what happened to him. The..." Sam swallowed before continuing. "His back... and those burns..." 

The group grew silent. Finally, when it became too much, Jack spoke again. 

"What about Smith?" 

"We got him calmed down and took a blood sample. We should be getting the results back soon." 

"What about Tesh?" Jack asked. "Is that going to happen to him?" Jack paused. "I mean, is he going to suddenly return from the dead and-" 

Janet frowned at the idea. 

"Well, we're not taking any chances. I've found no stages of decay or temperature decline. His core temperature is still at a steady 98 degrees and-" 

"Wait a minute," Sam interrupted. " **98 degrees**? That's almost normal body temperature! Wouldn't the body temperature begin to drop from a certain point after death?" 

"That's why we're not taking any chances." The doctor nodded towards one of the isolation rooms. "I've moved him to ISO 2, lowered the room temperature just in case, and have two guards posted there. If we hear anything or the sensors set up there pick up anything, I'll be the first one to know. Tesh died a few hours after Smith so it could be that he wouldn't... wake up until much later." 

Janet made a face. She couldn't believe, in all her years of medical practice, that she would be discussing about people rising from the dead. Then again, being here at SGC, she had seen many strange things. And rising from the dead was just that. 

"His blood work didn't show anything either though." 

"What about Major Sanders?" Jack asked. Janet shook her head. 

"Still nothing. We've upgraded his condition to critical and placed him in ICU." 

"So all that's left is Daniel," Sam said softly. She missed the glare Jack gave her, but Fraiser caught it. 

"We may have to resort to some alternatives in making him remember," Fraiser agreed, continuing hastily as she saw Jack was about to protest. "When he is better though." 

"O'Neill," Teal'c spoke up abruptly. "Daniel Jackson-" 

Jack didn't wait for the Jaafa to finish. He heard then what Teal'c had picked up first. A high pitched scream, muffled by the doors, but still audible enough to raise the hair on the back of his neck. Jack pushed through the group without any apology, on through the door and heading straight for the source of the scream. 

Three medics were already there, trying to restrain the young man, who writhed and twisted, still caught within his nightmare. Eyes still shut, Daniel was crying out when he felt hands roughly pinning his wrists and ankles down. Not knowing whether they were friend or foe, Daniel struggled against them weakly, his wailing growing steadily higher in pitch and more filled with terror. 

"What the hell is going on here?" Jack demanded, shoving one of the medics aside. 

"He started screaming and we tried to get him to calm down, but it's just not getting through to him," one of the medics tried to explain. The other began taking the buckled straps and wrapping them around Daniel's ankles. 

"What are you doing?" Jack snapped, slapping the hands away. "He doesn't need those!" 

Daniel's cries lowered and he began to whimper as he felt the restraints on his legs. His head shook left and right in denial. Jack glared at the three to back off as he sat down on the bed and placed both hands on Daniel's shoulders. The young man stiffened at the touch. 

"Daniel," Jack said firmly as he kept Daniel still. 

He winced as he thought of the bandages on Daniel's back and how they must be chafing the wounds they covered on contact with the bed. 

"Daniel. Open your eyes. Come on... wake up here..." 

He felt rather than saw, the others coming over and Fraiser motioning the medics away. But Jack didn't bother looking up to convey his gratitude. He kept his eyes on his friend. 

Daniel moaned softly at the sound of Jack's voice and responded by opening his eyes a bit. At the lights, he shut them again. 

"Lower the lights," Fraiser ordered in a quiet voice to her staff. 

Almost immediately, the lights dimmed to a soft glow. 

"Come on, Danny. It's okay. Wake up now. That's it..." 

Jack pasted a reassuring smile on his face as he saw Daniel's eyes flutter open. Dull blue eyes blinked as they tried to focus on Jack. 

"Wh't..." Daniel shifted and then tensed as his back throbbed, punishing him for the movements before. 

"Take it easy," Jack soothed, gently squeezing the shoulders under his palm, not yet letting go. Only when he felt the muscles begin to relax did he pull back. 

"Dre'm?" Daniel asked weakly. 

Jack's throat felt dry as he nodded. 

"Yeah. Dream." 

Daniel looked at Jack desperately. "Dre'm?" 

Somehow, Jack had a feeling Daniel wasn't asking about just his nightmare. What could he say? He could feel everyone's eyes on his back, waiting to see what he was going to say. 

_Each and every day, he said the same lines, said the same lies, until that young man died._

He's not going to die here! Jack thought angrily to himself, furious at himself for indulging in memory when the present was in dire need of attention. 

Weakly, Daniel's hand reached out and latched onto to Jack's sleeve again. The colonel didn't pull away. Jack could almost see the infirmary melting away. It's walls turning into stone, the clean floor now muddy and damp, the lights gone, and the sounds of medical machines becoming the screaming of prisoners. 

_It's not going to happen to him. Not to him._

Jack swallowed, mustering up another smile. 

"Yeah, Danny. Just a dream." 

A soft sob, more of relief than fright now, and Daniel nodded. He pulled away from Jack, looking a little ashamed for being so scared, but before Jack or anyone else could reassure him, he was curled onto his side with his back towards them. Within seconds, he was asleep again. 

"Oh, Daniel," Sam said softly, her heart breaking at the sight. 

She couldn't stop herself - stepping forward, she pulled the edges of the blanket and covered her friend once more. It was more for her benefit than for his. The image of him huddling within himself, shivering even though he wasn't cold, was just too much. 

"O'Neill," Teal'c spoke softly. "Was that... wise?" 

He understood what Daniel was asking and he was surprised that Jack would lie outright to Daniel, dismissing everything as a dream. 

"Colonel," Hammond said simply. 

"Just... just until he's better," Jack said dully, not rising from the bed yet. 

He was waiting for the infirmary to return and become the infirmary again. He was waiting for the screams to fade and becoming the annoying chirps and beeps of medical machinery again. 

"Then...we'll ask." 

"Fine," Janet said shortly. She shot the others a look, telling them silently to leave the two men alone for now. 

Jack ignored them all, not even bothering to say goodbye as he watched Daniel sleep. He knew the nightmares were only beginning and Jack would be damned if anyone was going to pull him away from here. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Anderson rubbed the sides of his temples wearily. He was almost tempted to sit down somewhere, but duty demanded that he stood there by the ISO rooms. To his left was Smith and to his right... 

Tesh. 

"Gives me the creeps, if you ask me," Anderson's bunkmate Booker muttered. "Guarding a dead guy." 

"I didn't ask you so shut the hell up, will you?" the sergeant said, without much anger in his voice. 

He glanced to his left, at the ISO room where Smith was, quiet now after hours of screaming and ranting. Anderson had tried talking to him, but Smith had backhanded him before the others could restrain him. Now he was sitting in a corner, hidden within the shadows of the room, slumped over like before. It was the same as when he and the rest of the rescue team had first found them. It gave Anderson an eerie sense of déjà vu. 

"You think Tom's okay?" Booker asked anxiously, his ruddy face flushed with concern. "I mean, being dead and all-" 

"He wasn't dead!" Anderson snapped, standing up to his full length. He towered a good few inches over Booker and made good use of it. "Damn it, Tom's not dead!" 

Booker, never one to shrink back from anything even for his own good, pressed on. 

"He was dead for three hours, Terry. A guy doesn't just wake up from that. It ain't-" 

"Will you shut the hell up?" Anderson said a bit more harshly now. "Tom's a good man! I've known him since I was a green faced Marine in Fort Dix! What the hell are you trying to do, sullying his name like that?" 

Booker finally took the hint, pretended to look at ISO 2, and through the criss-crossed barred windows to the gurney inside where Tesh was. 

Sighing, Anderson rubbed his shoulder, looking down at the floor to his boots. 

"Damn, Booker. Didn't mean to bite." 

"S'okay." Booker grinned crookedly, never one to hold a grudge. He paused. 

"You think Doctor Jackson's going to be like that?" 

Anderson grimaced, remembering the look on Colonel O'Neill's face when he broke into Jackson's cell and found him there. 

"I hope to God not. Otherwise, I'm gonna have to transfer to another base, rather than face him stalking the base's halls." Anderson shrugged. "Jackson's been through plenty of shit. He's always bounced back. He'll be okay." 

"Yeah, I guess-" Booker perked up. "You hear that?" He turned to peer into the ISO 2 window. "Holy shit! Tesh is gone!" 

"What?" Anderson drew out his sidearm. "Are you sure?" 

The stocky soldier nodded. 

"The gurney's on the floor. I don't see him." 

He peered at the darkness, at the bed lying sideways on the ground. The overhead lights showed nothing except the gurney, the cameras at the corners. Booker grabbed for his keys to open the door. 

Suddenly, a contorted face pressed itself right at the window. 

"Shit!" Booker yelped, startled. "Never mind, I found him!" 

The door thundered as fists pounded at the metal surface. Tesh, his face red with rage, screamed wordlessly. The door rattled and Anderson could have sworn he saw the wall shake too. 

"O'Neill!" 

Tesh's scream was so full of rage that Anderson felt goosebumps rising along his forearms from the sound of it. 

"I'm going to kill you!" 


	2. Chapter 2

_They didn't remove the body for days. He knew the guards had seen it, had known that no breath remained within, but all they did was laugh and leave it there. The anger he should have felt was not there. He didn't even have the urge to curse and spit at their faces when they came, shoving plates of food under the slot, plus one empty plate._

_There was no dignity in dying._

_Not this way. Not in here._

_He stared at the body, pushed to the corner by the others. He watched as the rats scampered away from it when he tossed one of the popped buttons of his torn fatigues at them. Dully, he stared back at the eyes that he couldn't bring himself to close, even after the last breath was drawn._

_Finally he staggered up, shrugged his own jacket off and placed it over the sightless eyes out of respect. But he suspected that it was more out of stopping the queasy feeling that the face staring at nothing, was soon going to be his..._

Jack jerked awake, hissing as his side heatedly reminded him that it was a dumb move. His hand automatically came up to his sore chest before he realized it. Rubbing ruefully at the tight binding, Jack glanced back at Daniel sleeping inches away from him. The young man had turned during his slumber, and was now facing Jack. 

Even in sleep, Daniel's pale face was lined with pain around the eyes and mouth - the dim lighting didn't successfully hide the burns near his temples and the bruises that marred his face. His forehead glistened with a fevered sweat. When Jack felt it with the back of his hand, he was relieved when he realized that it was only slight. But just in case, Jack drew the covers closer to Daniel's chin, preserving the heat the fever was leeching away from his friend's ailing body. 

The drawn blankets, the curled up frame, a face half concealed by the white pillow, made him appear young and calm. It was a difference from the feral look he had when Jack first found him, huddling in that dirty corner, his head hidden under blood-smeared arms. Now he didn't look terrified. Now, he just looked small. Very small. 

_He stared at the body, pushed to the corner by the others, his own jacket placed over the sightless eyes out of respect._

Jack shuddered. Weren't dreams supposed to fade with each waking minute? Not intensify to the point that it superimposed itself upon reality? 

Jack grabbed for the pitcher of water, pouring himself a glass - he grasped the glass with both hands, before emptying the entire contents down his parched throat. When it was empty, Jack set it down on the table next to the bed. He misjudged the distance and it slammed down so loudly, it made him jump. 

Daniel moaned softly, wincing as his back twinged. Groggily, he opened his eyes. 

"Ja'k?" 

"Hey. Didn't mean to wake you." 

Jack grinned, hoping the shadows around the room would disguise the fact that it was forced. 

"Ja'k?" The anthropologist squinted in the dim light. 

Jack leaned forward a bit so Daniel could see. 

"Aren't you going to say anything else besides that?" 

He patted Daniel's hand to show that he was joking. 

"W'ter?" Daniel ran his tongue over his lower lip as he tried again. His voice cracked a bit. "Pl'ase, Ja'k?" 

The older man nodded. 

"Doc said ice chips for now. Your throat is a bit sore because they took the breathing tube out of you. Take it easy for now. Okay?" 

"'Kay..." Daniel looked longingly at the cup Jack reached out for by the bed. Without another word, he opened his mouth and closed his eyes as Jack spooned some ice chips into his mouth. 

"Better?" Jack asked quietly, still holding on to the cup. 

Daniel nodded, not speaking. His eyes were still closed as he sucked the refreshing moisture out of the ice. After a moment though, he opened his eyes again and fixed them on Jack. 

"What?" the older man asked nervously. 

Turning away, Daniel stared at the ceiling. 

"I still don't...r-remember, Ja'k." His voice was hoarse and Jack knew it probably hurt to talk, but Daniel pressed on. "Wh't happened?" 

"Don't worry about it for now, Daniel." Jack waved the cup towards him and placed it away when Daniel weakly shook his head. "There's plenty of time for that later when you're better." 

Sighing, Daniel turned back to look at Jack. His blue eyes, though slightly unfocused, bored right through the colonel. Jack looked away, then, realizing how that must have appeared, he forced himself to face the anthropologist again. The two locked stares for a long time before Daniel sighed again and broke the contact. 

"W-why can't I rem... remember, Ja'k?" 

Daniel weakly lifted his left hand to brush away a stray hair, pausing at the sight of the heavily bound gauze on his wrists. He then raised his right hand and saw the same. Daniel was opening his mouth to ask when his eyes strayed upon the IV attached to his arm. He gazed at the bottle hanging above him, tracked the line down to his arm, where a needle was inserted into his vein, secured into place with surgical tape. Although covered, Daniel could see the sharp impression of a needle. 

Needle. 

"Daniel?" Jack leaned forward when he saw the minute shuddering. 

_Needle. Pricking his skin, digging deeper into his flesh, hot pain stabbing inside, all because he refused._

"Daniel?" The colonel frowned when he saw that Daniel wasn't responding. 

_Because he refused._

"Danny?" Jack's voice rose a bit in alarm. 

_He did refuse... right?_

The young man was staring at his hands for some reason, mouth slightly opened but no words coming out. Jack reached out, touching Daniel on the shoulder. Jerking away, Daniel's hands automatically lashed out towards his assailant. Catching Jack in the ribs, the blow made the older man grunt. That sound brought Daniel back to reality. He blinked, confused. 

"Oh God... Ja'k... I'm s-sorry..." Daniel stammered as he tried to sit up to see if Jack was okay. 

He grimaced, his hands immediately going to his stomach. Jack grabbed Daniel by the shoulders in time before the young man could fall sideways. 

"Hey, take it easy. Let me go get the Doc-" Jack began, getting up from his seat. 

"No!" 

Daniel's hands whipped out and grabbed Jack's before they could leave his shoulders completely. His eyes grew wide, almost turning into circles. 

"No... don't!" 

"Daniel, you're hurting here. Let me get-" 

"No..." Daniel shook his head vehemently, his voice trembling, and turning into a whimper. "Alone... no... please..." 

Jack's legs no longer had the strength to move, to turn around to get Fraiser, so he plopped down on the chair again. Awkwardly, he squeezed back, feeling the desperate grip on his fingers before removing them from Daniel's shoulders. He then helped Daniel back down on the bed, watching carefully for any sign of discomfort. Jack paid extra attention to tucking the blankets back in, unable to bring himself to look at Daniel, at the pleading in those eyes. 

He couldn't figure out what they were begging for. 

"S-sorry..." Daniel whispered. 

Sighing, Jack shook his head. 

"It's all right, Daniel," Jack said, leaning into the chair - he felt his back curling uncomfortably against the plastic surface. "Just get some sleep." 

Daniel looked at Jack hopefully. Hesitant fingers reached out and snagged a corner of Jack's shirt. 

"H're?" 

Jack nodded mutely. He watched Daniel relax, eyes fluttering shut again into sleep. Massaging his temples, Jack tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling. 

"Tesh is awake." 

Jolting out of his seat, Jack whirled around, one hand back protectively to his side. 

"Shit, Doc! Give the guy a heart attack, why don't you?" 

Janet stood by the doorway, silhouetted by the hallway lights. Her face was unreadable as she continued to speak. 

"I just took a blood sample. We're having it tested right now. Should only be an hour or so till we can compare it with Smith's. Captain Carter and Teal'c are talking to Smith right now-" 

"He's coherent?" Jack looked away - to Daniel, making sure the conversation wasn't waking him up. 

"To say the least," the doctor replied shortly. She moved in to the room. 

Gently, she took one of Daniel's wrists, and compared the pulse with her watch. Although the monitors could do just the same for her, Janet knew the reassuring human touch could do so much more than an IV or a syringe could. But the feel of the slack hand, limp in her palm and painfully chilled, only reminded her how fragile the man on the bed was. She glanced over to Jack. 

"Had he said anything at all?" 

Jack's face stilled, devoid of any expression. 

"No. Doesn't remember anything." 

"You don't look too upset about that," Janet said softly. 

"Don't know what you're talking about." Jack crossed his arms, signaling the conversation was over. 

"You're going to stay here all night?" 

Jack kept silent. 

"I'll have one of the staff ready that empty bed over there so you could get some rest-" 

"Not tired," Jack grated. 

"Humor me. Okay?" 

"Fine." 

Jack didn't say anything else, his shoulders stiff, and his back ram-rod straight. 

Seeing that there was nothing more could be said, nothing more she could do, Janet left the room, feeling very much like an intruder into something she didn't understand. 

Jack didn't even acknowledge her departure. 

* * *

Sam watched silently as Smith paced the cell. She mentally calculated all the injuries he had sustained and how none of them seemed to be showing their effects right now. It was nothing short of a miracle. 

"What did I do?" 

Smith's hoarse voice sounded disembodied over the PA, as he stared into the security cameras which were unsympathetically recording his agitated pacing. The large man ran a hand through military cut hair. Abruptly, he whirled around, banging on the wall with his fist. 

Carter jumped despite the fact that she was in the next room with Janet and General Hammond and not in there with Smith. 

Clearing his throat, Hammond leaned closer to the microphone and spoke into it. 

"Lieutenant Smith?" 

"Sir." 

Smith automatically stood up straighter, but his shoulders slumped soon after when it came to him that he was the only one in the room. 

"General Hammond, sir." 

"At ease, soldier," Hammond said, his voice holding a gentle note in it. He glanced over to Fraiser as he continued. "It's just a precautionary measure, until the blood work clears with Doctor Fraiser, son." 

Smith sighed, his voice sounded tinny in the speakers. 

"I see." 

"But I'm afraid we have to ask-" 

"About what happened?" Smith said abruptly. 

"Yes, son." 

Smith looked up startled. 

"Did I really die?" 

This time, Janet answered. 

"We tried all we could, but the internal injuries were too severe. You died... I mean... your heart... stopped on the table." 

"I see the stitches, Doc," Smith said softly, fingering his T-shirt, as if feeling every knot underneath. "I'm not dead." 

"We know that." Hammond took over again. "What happened?" 

Smith paused. "Where should I begin?" 

"What do you remember?" 

"Hell." Smith whispered. "Hell." 

+++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

_P7J973 smelled like apples. That was Smith's impression when he took his first whiff of air on the planet. The scent was so strong that he actually looked around, to see if there were thriving rows of apple trees surrounding them._

_"All clear, Major," Tesh announced as he nodded towards Doctor Jackson. "All yours, Doc. Whenever you're ready."_

_Daniel Jackson blinked, tearing his eyes away from the ruins he could see in the distance._

_"What? Oh. Thank you."_

_He hurried down the steps, one hand already patting around his jacket for his notebook. The men held back a chuckle as they watched the anthropologist stumble a little in his haste._

_Major Sanders chuckled. "I think he was ready before they starting calling out chevron one." The tall man eyed his men, deciding on their duties._

_"Stone, you go ahead with Jackson. Smith, you and Tesh set camp around the perimeter of the site. I'll patrol first, circle back in an hour. Okay?"_

_"Yes, sir."_

_"Will do."_

_"Yes, sir."_

_Sanders rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he eyed the direction Jackson and Stone went off in._

_"After camp, keep an eye on Jackson, okay? Colonel O'Neill made it pretty clear he wants his linguist back in one piece."_

_The other two men grinned, exchanging a look with one another._

_"Yes, sir," they chorused._

_Saluting sharply, the two headed for the village ruins, their gear in tow._

"So you and Tesh weren't with Dan... I mean, Doctor Jackson at the time?" Sam interrupted. 

"Major didn't see a need for it. There were no signals, nothing that would indicate anyone still hanging around there. We were suppose to set camp, let the Doc do his thing, then set up a permanent base for future explorations. Standard." 

Smith sat down on the floor, scowling at the camera. 

"Standard," Hammond murmured. "So what happened?" 

"Me and Tesh got base set up and radioed Stone that we were heading over there to keep them company. He said fine and gave us their location. They were near the edge of the village and-" 

"What was the village like?" Sam asked, jumping in again. 

"Quiet. Dusty. Old." Smith shrugged. "Everything looked to be in working order. Hell, even the wells still had drinking water in them. But no one was around. The fireplaces were cold, and some had even caved in over the years. No one lived there." Smith rubbed his face wearily with his hands. "No one. There should have been no one." He trailed off, muttering to himself. 

"Lieutenant?" Janet eyed the monitors worriedly, reading the sensors' data. So far, pulse and heart rate normal, but Janet didn't know what to expect at this point. 

"There should have been no one, but we... I mean me and Tesh, sir... we kept having this funny feeling." 

"Feeling?" Hammond echoed. 

"That... that we were being watched." 

_"Stone, you still there?"_

_Smith paused long enough to whip out his communicator. He eyed the abandoned buildings at the distance with a wary eye. Then he turned back to the forest. Faintly, he heard birds and relaxed._

_"Stone, can you read me?"_

_The radio crackled to life._

_"Yeah, Smith. Jackson's in front of me, doing... stuff."_

_Tesh chuckled, amused at the choice of words._

_"Stuff? Is that the technical term ?"_

_Stone snorted, his voice sounding like a muffled boom over the radio._

_"Well that's how he put it. I asked him and sort of mumbled something when... what the hell?"_

_"Stone?" Smith grabbed the radio with both hands. "Stone? Hey, John?"_

_The radio crackled a little and he thought he heard Stone shouting in the distance, before the radio went silent._

_The two soldiers looked at each other._

_"Shit," Tesh said, whipping out his rifle._

_"Major Sanders! This is Smith. Do you read?" the soldier barked into the radio._

_Their CO replied immediately._

_"Here. Where are you?"_

_"Three minutes away from the site, sir. We were online with Stone when he got cut off."_

_"Cut off?" Sanders' voice rose in volume. "What do you mean cut off? I'm just over the ridge, I'll be there in-" Suddenly Sanders' signal was gone._

_"Sir?" Tesh grabbed his radio. "Major Sanders."_

_Gunfire._

_Smith whipped out his sidearm._

_"Where did that come from?"_

_In the distance, muffled sounds, abrupt and sharp, rang out through the forest. Alien creatures, startled by the unfamiliar sounds, squawked then fled the scene, rushing past the startled soldiers._

_"Shit, do we head back the Stargate and get-" Smith didn't finish when he heard Sanders suddenly screaming into the radio._

_"Smith! Tesh! Get back to the Stargate! Now! I just saw them! It's h-"_

_The radio went dead just as an explosion was heard. The two soldiers whirled around towards that direction and found themselves surrounded by Jaafa guards, their foreheads tattooed with two slanted lines, curved in at the center._

_"Kneel!" one of the guards spat out. "Kneel before your god!"_

_A sharp blow to his right and Smith took out one guard, but before he could do more, he heard a staff weapon discharge and the searing heat on his side burned the daylight from his vision. Darkness took over and the last thing he saw was a slim figure approaching the clearing, and Doctor Jackson being dragged between two guards._

_"Fools!" the velvety voice sang out. "We needed him alive..."_

_And then there was nothing._

* * *

There was an awkward silence in the room. The only sounds were the whirring of the monitors. 

"I mean... I was... I was... dead..." Smith frowned as he finished. "That shot should have cleaned my gut out." 

"Sarcophagus?" Sam whispered. Janet shrugged. 

"I didn't find any burn marks where he said he was struck," Janet whispered back. "It is plausible." 

"So what we may have here is a Goa'uld posing as a god," Hammond added, frowning, the idea not appealing to him at all. 

"B-but... I couldn't have been dead..." Smith whispered. 

Carter turned back her attention to the screen. 

"Excuse me?" 

"I woke up in a cell almost a day later." 

Sam turned to look at Janet. 

"How did you know a day had passed?" 

"Growth of beard," Smith replied, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Had a day's growth at least. Have to shave every day so I can tell." 

"Was anyone else with you?" 

Smith's eyes darkened. 

"Yeah..." 

_Adjusting to the darkness of the cell, Smith slowly made out two shapes keeping him company. He coughed, spitting water out and tried to call out their names, but his throat burned. Wincing, Smith got up groggily, then felt his way around the stone wall, to the two._

_Tesh and Stone._

_He looked around his cell again, noting the window above his head, too high to reach and the window on the cell door. He didn't see Sanders or Jackson. His frown deepened._

_"W-who's there?" a voice asked, coughing._

_Smith looked down and saw Stone snake a hand out to his ankle. He hunched down and tapped the ground._

_"John, it's me."_

_"Tom?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Where the hell are we?" Stone muttered. He made a face, turned over and sputtered, dry heaving. Smith gripped his friend's arm tightly._

_"You ask me." Smith shrugged._

_"I just did, stupid," Stone tried to joke._

_Chuckling lightly, Smith helped Stone up. Settling his friend against the wall, he checked Tesh's pulse._

_"How is he?"_

_"Pulse is steady. Looks like he was just knocked out."_

_Smith paused. He fingered his fatigues, feeling the hole in the fabric._

_"What?"_

_"I should have been dead," Smith mumbled._

_"What?" Stone sat up straighter._

_Smith showed him the uniform._

_"Not that I'm complaining, but last time I checked, people from Kentucky don't have an immunity to staff weapon blasts."_

_"Yeah."_

_Stone turned his head when he saw Tesh was stirring. Smith sighed in relief when the soldier got up on his own._

_"Someone get the number of that salsa party in my head?" Tesh groaned._

_Stone chuckled, pounding the man soundly on the back. Tesh gagged and Stone backed off._

_"Sorry," Stone murmured as Tesh turned his head to retch._

_"Shit. I feel like I have a hangover," Tesh moaned._

_"Well that's three." Smith calculated. "Anyone remember anything?"_

_"I saw you get a hole on your gut," Tesh recalled, narrowing his eyes at Smith._

_"Speaking of which-"_

_Smith showed him the hole in the uniform._

_"I'm okay for some reason. I saw Jackson."_

_"Me too, before it was lights out."_

_"I saw Major Sanders before they came," Stone volunteered._

_"Where?"_

_Smith paced the cell, one hand running along the wall to measure the room. It was too dark to see across it._

_"He was coming down from the east ridge when they attacked me and Jackson."_

_"Oh man," Tesh moaned. "Jackson. Well, I'm on O'Neill's shit list now!"_

_Smith grimaced._

_"No kidding. We better find a way out of here and get Jack-"_

_A scream broke through the silence and the three men jumped._

_"Shit," Stone breathed. "What the hell **was** that?" _

_Suddenly the door swung open and they saw a tall Jaafa guard standing there with his staff weapon._

_"Come," he snarled and the three men found themselves separated, being led down different corridors._

_Smith tried to see where the others went but a sound slap to his head discouraged it. Dazed, his head dropped down to stare at the repetitive pattern of the stones on the floor until the darkness suddenly became light._

_Eyes wincing at the sudden brightness, Smith at first didn't see the shackles that hung from the ceiling. When white light finally became the hues of reality, Smith saw Jackson._

_The young scientist hung there by his torn wrists, dangling inches off the ground._

_Smith swallowed at the surge of bile in his throat when he saw the grooves on Jackson's back, peeking through the torn shirt. In a cruel gesture, the guard placed the glasses they had set aside, back on the anthropologist's face._

_"Jackson?" Smith whispered, trying not to cry out as the guards wrestled his arms into similar shackles. "Doctor Jackson!"_

_The scientist moaned softly, receiving a lash on his back for speaking. Smith winced as he cried out in pain, arching his back trying to avoid the blows. Smith could see a figure in the shadows of the room, eyes glowing, laughing softly as the guard lashed out with the whip again and-_

"That's enough," Hammond managed to grate out. 

He glanced over to Carter, who looked pale. Janet swallowed as she stepped back and sat down, one hand over her mouth. Smith was now seated in the center of the room, looking dazed, as his voice trailed off. 

"After... after what they did to Doctor Jackson," Hammond said, closing his eyes briefly. "What happened next?" 

"What happened next?" Smith repeated in a flat voice. He looked up, his eyes dull. 

"Then... it was my turn." 

_Smith grunted as the guards threw him back in the cell and slammed the door shut. The soldier gritted his teeth as he struggled to his feet, gasping as muscles spasmed, clenching tight over bloody wounds. He eyed his new surroundings, the room was smaller, but still with the same windows. One outside, one on the door. Wearily, Smith noted that it was dark now._

"I woke up and the light was very bright in the window and so I knew it was the next afternoon," Smith said numbly. "Then... they came back." 

_It felt like Smith had barely laid his head down to sleep when they came through the door again. As they dragged him down the hallways once more, he saw blearily that he was passing by the same room as before - Doctor Jackson had been returned to where he had been hanging, in the shackles again-_

"Wait," Sam choked out. Not because she didn't want to hear, although secretly she didn't, there was one thing she had realized. "Where were the others?" 

"Don't know," Smith whispered. "I heard them, but the guards never brought them back to the cell. I think we were kept separated at that point. They didn't put us back together until a week later. After I saw O'Neill-" 

"What?" Hammond leaned closer to the microphone. "You saw Colonel O'Neill?" 

"Yes sir," Smith grated out. "I saw him talking to Doctor Jackson on one of those days they came for me." 

_Feet limp, trailing blood across the halls, Smith didn't bother trying to move. He was trying to conserve what little strength he had left. Now that the others were with him, they could have a chance of escape and picking fights now with the guards was not an option. So he let them drag him like a piece of meat, back to his cell._

_"Ja'k?"_

_Smith's head came up painfully and he saw, through the same doorway, a man standing there. He was standing in front of Doctor Jackson, who was still hanging from his shackles. He couldn't hear what the man was saying but as he turned to leave, Smith heard Jackson cry out O'Neill's name again. The guards hauled Smith roughly to his feet, approaching his room. Smith turned his head and caught the sight of a familiar face, with glowing eyes-_

"His eyes were glowing?" Sam asked. 

"I figured that he never really got rid of that worm from last time," Smith said dully. "He was there with Jackson and he called the colonel's name." Smith scowled. "All I knew was that the man was there! And then hewalked out!" Smith shot to his feet. "He left us behind. They all saw him, and I knew that if I was ever got out... I was going to kill him!" 

The three looked at each other speechless. 

"Smith..." Carter started to say. "You were only gone for three days." 

The man shook his head. 

"I counted the number of times daylight showed through that window. I know it was two weeks!" 

Hammond cleared his throat, his voice soft. 

"Son... you were in an underground complex. SG-1 and SG-3 found the underground facility three miles outside of the village. There were no outside lights whatsoever." 

Smith stared at the camera, stunned. 

"B-but..." 

"I think it was a ploy," Sam stepped in, her eyes on the screen, even though Smith could not see it. "A ploy to wear you down." 

Smith gnawed at his lower lip. "They didn't say what they wanted... or at least... what I can remember..." 

"No questions?" Hammond asked. 

"None." Smith rubbed his face with his hands. "It was just the guards taking us out of the room, waking us up when there was daylight shining through the window, dragging us out and then..." Smith dropped his head on his drawn up knees. "Sometimes they would remember to give us water. Otherwise..." 

Sam sighed. She looked over to General Hammond. 

"Sir?" 

"There must have been a reason," Hammond said, not wanting to accept that it was all just random that they were chosen. "Doctor?" 

Janet looked at her watch. 

"I have to get the results from the lab and check on Tesh. Maybe we'll be able to find out more with that." 

"We'll be here," Carter said softly. "For as long as it takes." 

Janet nodded curtly, turned on her heel and left. Behind her, as the door closed, she heard Hammond continuing. 

"I know it's hard, son. But we need you to go over that again. Maybe we'll catch something there..." 

++++++++++++++++++++ 

Booker chewed on his thumbnail nervously as Anderson paced. 

"Man, he's pretty quiet now." 

"He has been sedated by Doctor Fraiser," Teal'c said stiffly, joining the two to stand guard. 

When Tesh had first woken up, the enraged man had literally punched a hole in the wall before he and three others could restrain him long enough for Fraiser to subdue him. The Jaafa eyed the cell's window, observing the sleeping man, hunched over by the corner. 

"Ain't right," Anderson muttered. "First Tom. Now Tesh. Shit, at least Tom's awake now, but what the hell is going on here?" 

"Terry-" Booker murmured. 

"I do not know, but perhaps Lieutenant Smith will be able to reveal what happened on P7J973." Teal'c nodded towards Janet as he saw her coming. "Doctor Fraiser." 

"Teal'c," Janet greeted him. She eyed the doorway. "Still out?" 

"He has not moved for the past one hour and fifteen minutes," Teal'c informed her. 

Booker leaned closer to Anderson. 

"He doesn't have a watch... how does he do that?" 

"Shut the hell up," Anderson hissed, turning a little red when the Jaafa raised an eyebrow towards him. He looked straight ahead again. 

Janet sighed. 

"I've got the lab results back, but I need another sample to be sure. Teal'c, can you come with me?" 

"Of course," Teal'c nodded. 

He stood there waiting as Booker fumbled for the keys. Anderson stood by the door, waiting, his eyes glued to the window, watching Tesh. Fraiser paused as Teal'c stepped inside. At the Jaafa's nod, she entered, her hands digging into her pockets for a syringe. 

Abruptly, Tesh lurched forward, his elbow ramming into Teal'c's stomach. 

Anderson shouted as Booker rushed in but before either man could sound the alarm, they heard the doctor cry out. Anderson was just in time to catch Fraiser as she was tossed out roughly by Tesh. The sergeant grunted as the smaller body impacted with his and felt himself slammed down hard on the floor. Then he felt himself hauled up. 

"Inside," Tesh growled, shoving Anderson inside with the others. 

He swung the door shut. Growling as he saw the four lying there unmoving, he stalked away. 

* * *

_He felt himself being dragged out again. His feet couldn't hold him up so the guards just dragged him through the hallways, passing the doors where the others were, to the room where everything would start again. As usual, in order to survive, he allowed his mind to drift away, as far away as it could from the sight of the chair, the devices, and the person waiting inside..._

Jack started, nearly falling off his chair. Glowering at his watch, the colonel realized that he had drifted off to sleep again. 

Stirring slightly, Daniel murmured something in his sleep, frowning as his mind dredged up whatever it was in his subconscious. 

"Easy," Jack whispered, laying a cool hand on Daniel's clammy forehead. The young man turned towards the hand a little, instinctively seeking it's comfort before sighing, and falling into a deeper sleep. Jack left his hand there for a moment before finally pulling it away. 

_Demons come knocking on his door as soon as he gets back. What will happen when he truly remembers?_

Jack crossed his arms; leaning back into his chair, wishing the infirmary wouldn't keep flickering back to the image of a dark cell. He was almost tempted to turn on the lights to their brightest, but Daniel's eyes were still sensitive. 

The young man had woken up several times, feebly complaining that the lights were too bright and they had been lowered again until all that was left was the sharp pinpoint glow of the monitors' lights and the occasional flash of bright light from the hallway, with the opening and closing of the door. And still, when Daniel woke up, he would open his eyes, and then shut them as quickly as he could. 

_Maybe it's not the lights he's afraid to see_ , Jack thought. 

Jack wondered if Daniel was really seeing the infirmary at all. The colonel sighed, wondering how he would to even bring himself to start asking what Daniel saw when he was here. 

What Daniel saw... back there. 

Jack had a sneaky suspicion that he knew already. 

_The glass shattered as soon as it hit the wall, the amber liquid it held trickling down the wall like blood onto stone._

_Jack stood there, his fists by his sides, his eyes clenched tight, spurred on by the haze of alcohol. He could find nothing more to throw, which was just as well, because he was going to have a hell of a time explaining to Sara already when she and Charlie returned from her father's tomorrow._

_That piece of practicality seeped into his consciousness and Jack blinked, finally, focusing on the chaos that lay around him._

_The disjointed remains of glass, pottery and paper circled around him and spreading out like a picture of a hurricane. And there he was, Jack O'Neill, sole survivor of a mission blown to hell in Iraq, standing there, at the eye of the storm._

_He felt anything but calm._

_He could still hear them. Screaming. Begging. Crying. And he was only a mere mortal, with only two hands to clap over his ears, in his pathetic attempts to block out the sounds of four months of hell._

_He couldn't forget them._

_It wasn't working. The gratitude he felt for just being alive seeemed like a pitiful penance for the torment of sleepless nights, waking up screaming, or the drowning of his senses with thirty proof liquor every night._

Jack sat there, eyes half closed, staring at the wall beyond Daniel's bed. He could almost taste the liquor that had soured his mouth every night back then, for more than two months, before he finally took a mission to South America. That move nearly cost him his marriage, with Sara tearfully telling him the day he left, that she and Charlie might not be waiting for him when... **if** he came back. 

She was, but it had never really been the same after that. And, after the time Jack woke up one day and found his wife curled at the farthest side of their bed, he knew that something had to change. **He** had to change. 

And he did. 

_Not that I didn't lose them anyway later on_ , Jack thought darkly. 

And he still... couldn't forget. He'd forgiven Cromwell, but he never... ever... forgot. 

Jack almost envied Daniel right now. 

The older man watched as Daniel stirred slightly, yet another frown lining his forehead, his fingers curling instinctively around the blankets, as if he were trying to hide within them. 

_Almost_ , Jack added as an afterthought. Jack sighed again. 

He frowned then, remembering that he had felt a lingering warm on the man's forehead before, and he was debating calling Fraiser when he heard the commotion outside. 

As Jack turned around, the guard that had been standing outside the private room came flying through the door, crashing to the floor at Jack's feet. The colonel stood up, his chair clattering over, just in time for Tesh to tackle him at the waist. 

"Tesh! Wha-" 

Jack had no time to finish as he felt the young soldier grab him and the force of the impact pushed him onto the bed, on top of Daniel's legs. The young man moaned at the heavy weight. 

Jack cursed, struggling to get Tesh off, to roll off the bed, when he felt a fist rammed into his throat. Gagging, Jack's hands slackened from around Tesh and went automatically for his neck. Suddenly the weight was off of him as Tesh stumbled back to the door and locked it. 

The click of the door alerted to Jack to the dire situation he was in, and he lurched back onto his feet. He could feel Daniel waking up, drowsy eyes still too unfocused to see what was going on. 

"Ja'k?" 

The name brought Jack's eyes to Daniel. The effect on Tesh however, was totally different. 

"He was calling for you," Tesh seethed, his fists bunched to his sides. "He was calling for you all the time, wouldn't stop when they tried to shut him up, wouldn't stop!" 

Tesh charged at the colonel, eyes blazing with a fury Jack had never seen before. 

"And you stood there at the door, watching it all! You bastard!" 

Jack grunted, as Tesh knocked into him, old bruises mingling with new as they tumbled over the bed, and down the other side. He could hear Daniel calling out in alarm now, but he didn't have the strength or the air to tell the young scientist to stay put. Grabbing Tesh by the shirt, hoping to subdue the man before Jack was forced to hurt him, Jack tried to throw his opponent to the ground, hoping the impact would stun the man long enough for Jack to get help from outside. 

Boots were planted firmly on Jack's chest, as Tesh drew up his legs. 

_Then again_ , Jack thought before he grunted when Tesh kicked him, pushing Jack into the bed. The IV stands rattled and Jack could hear Daniel trying to get up now. 

"Stay...stay where you are!" Jack wheezed. "Just press that alert button, get some-" 

The older man didn't finish as Tesh grabbed him roughly around the chest and he felt the plastic tubing of an unused IV wrap around his throat. 

"You left us there to die," Tesh hissed, his mouth close to Jack's ear. "But now it's your turn." 

The tubing tightened and Jack sputtered as the last of his air was spent, his lungs heaving, unable to get any more. The last thing he heard before fading away into blackness was Daniel's horrified shouts and pounding on the door. 

* * *

When Daniel felt something land on his legs, he panicked. He thought for a moment that they had returned to take him there again. The last time, he had tried to hide in the corner, but the guards had found him, dragged him out by the ankles and then beaten him until he was too weak to fight them any more. 

Then they took him to... 

He couldn't remember. 

Shouting. He could hear shouting now. 

Daniel wanted to cover his ears. The shouting was so loud. So loud. He could hear the screams of pain from... 

_From who?_

He couldn't remember. 

_Jack._

He remembered Jack. 

_Jack was standing there. Watching him as they beat him, as the whip came down again and again. He just watched._

_No._

_That wasn't true. Jack said it wasn't true. He promised._

Jack wasn't there, watching, when Daniel couldn't pretend to be strong any more, when he lost the battle not to cry out, when he said... yes... 

_No._

_No!_

He didn't say yes! He didn't! 

_It wasn't true!_

_Jack said it wasn't true!_

Daniel called out to Jack. He needed his friend to tell him one more time. Tell him again that it wasn't true. 

"Ja'k?" 

"He was calling for you. He was calling for you all the time, wouldn't stop when they tried to shut him up, wouldn't stop! And you stood there at the door, watching it all! You bastard!" 

Daniel opened his eyes when he heard Tesh's voice. He stiffened when he heard the soldier's accusations. 

_It wasn't true!_

_Jack said it wasn't true!_

Then he heard the crash. 

Daniel pushed himself up, gritting his teeth as his side and back shrieked with the movement. He clung to the rail, about to swing his feet down when one of the IV stands rattled against his bed. He looked down and to his horror, saw Jack slumped there against the bed, looking up at him with dazed brown eyes. 

"Stay...stay where you are!" Jack wheezed. "Just press that alert button, get some-" 

He didn't finish. Tesh tore off some plastic tubing from somewhere and began to choke Jack. 

"Ja'k!" Daniel shouted, tumbling out of the bed. He fell hard onto his knees and everything darkened for a moment. "Ja'k!" 

Tesh was frothing at the mouth now, screaming about things Daniel could never believe that Jack could have done. The tubing tighten and Daniel saw Jack's hands slowing down in his struggles. 

He had to do something. 

Daniel stumbled as he tried to stand, hissing as the burns on his feet flared up when they touched the cold floor. He half sobbed with pain as he tried in vain to reach the IV stand in front of him. It was only a few inches away. Why couldn't he reach it? 

There. 

Fingers felt cold metal and Daniel nearly sagged with relief. But he couldn't. Not yet. He had to stop Tesh. He had to help Jack. 

Dragging the IV stand by the wheels, Daniel staggered over to Tesh. 

"Let him go," Daniel mumbled. 

Tesh was still screaming. 

_Stop screaming. Please!_

The sounds coming out of Tesh's mouth sounded so familiar, as if he had heard them all before. 

"Let him go!" Daniel shouted, trying to reach Tesh. 

No time. 

"I'm...s-sorry." 

And Daniel swung. 

The metal pole struck Tesh at the back of the head and almost immediately Tesh released Jack from the strangle hold. The colonel fell to the ground, his hands on his throat, coughing, spluttering. Tesh made no sound as he dropped face down to the floor. 

Daniel clung to the IV stand, shivering, staring down at the prone body on the ground. He didn't bother trying to check if Tesh was still alive. Daniel could barely hold on to the metal pole as it was. 

"D-daniel?" Jack wheezed, but the young man didn't respond. 

The pounding on the door broke Daniel's concentration. He looked numbly at the door, seeing the shadows highlighted at the window there, and shuddered. He turned, starting to head for the door, to let them in, so he could sleep, so he could lie down. He was so tired. He- 

"Oh my God..." 

Daniel stopped in front of the mirror that was hanging on the bathroom door. He gawked at the image reflected there. 

That wasn't him. 

"Dan...Daniel?" Jack tried to sit up, tried to wave away the spots dancing in front of his eyes 

Daniel touched the bruises on his face tentatively and watched his reflection do the same. His fingers moved up to the burns on the temples. 

_"You will not refuse any more," a liquid soft voice said as it approached him._

_Daniel flinched as he felt slender fingers stroke his cheek, deliberately travelling over the burns near his hairline, over the gash on his jawbone._

_"Do you not wish for the pain to disappear?"_

_He did, but the price was too high._

_He felt the device slip over his face again and he couldn't stop himself from whimpering. The voice shushed him like as if he was a child._

_"All you have to do is say yes... and it will be all over."_

_"N-no."_

_He cringed as he saw the eyes burn with hate now, all gentleness, and all sympathy gone from them._

_"Do not mock the fondness I have for you. It will not protect you forever, B-"_

"Daniel!" 

Jack grabbed the rail of the bed, hauling himself up to his feet. Daniel stood there, barely hanging on to the IV stand, just staring at the mirror. Abruptly, he twisted, his hands struggling to reach his back, to tear the bandages off. 

"What the hell are you doing?" 

_The lashes felt like fire as they ripped through his back. Daniel screamed. He didn't know he had the air left to do so. But this only seemed to spur the guards on even more. Daniel tried not to say anything, but he kept seeing the shadow by the doorway, eyes glowing, making no move to stop them._

_"Jack!"_

"It's...n-not true..." Daniel mumbled, ripping off the taped gauze from his back, not feeling the stitches stretch taut on some spots. 

Someone's hands tried to pull his away. 

"Don't touch them! Lie down! Let me get hel-" 

_"D-don't t-touch me..." Daniel mumbled, trying to twist away from those fingers again._

_"You will never leave me," the voice began again. "You will not refuse."_

_"N-no..."_

_"He will die..."_

_"N-no..."_

_"You will obey me."_

_"N-no!" The last one was a scream._

_The voice only laughed._

_"There is nothing you can do about it."_

"It's not...t-true..." The young man was half sobbing now, fighting he hands that were on him. "I d-didn't" 

The last of the bandages fell away, fluttering to the ground silently. Jack gripped Daniel's shoulders, unwilling to leave him, even to open the door. The pounding at the door was nothing compared to the harsh breathing coming from Daniel. 

"I..." 

Daniel stared at the opening of his hospital gown, at the dark jagged X's that marred his back, at the red slashes not deep enough for stitches but still deep enough to stay with him as a vivid reminder of what happened. 

"Danny?" 

Jack shook Daniel's shoulders gently, swallowing as he got a clear look at the damage that had been wrought. Back when Jack had first found him, the blood soaked T-shirt had concealed the ugliness of the wounds with a wash of red. But this- 

"Oh God..." Daniel's voice trailed away as he started to shake. "What... what h-happened... I..." 

_The screaming had left him hoarse, hanging limply against the tightness of the chains. He hung there, enduring the laughter around him, the stench of blood and sweat, feeling the fingers stroke his cheek again._

_"What will it be?"_

_It was like he was reading from a script in front of him. All it said was no. But... but... the script began to fade away from him... he couldn't see the words... couldn't remember their purpose. So, with a sob, he opened his mouth and said-_

"I...I...s-said yes," Daniel whispered horrified. He tumbled back into Jack's grip, his eyes wide, staring at the white caricature of himself reflected in the mirror. "I... God... I said... y-yes!" He covered his face with his hands. 

_"Good," the voice cooed. Fingers stroked his cheek again as Daniel began to cry. "He will pay."_

_"Y-yes..."_

_"He will die."_

_"Y-yes..."_

Jack turned Daniel round, away from the mirror. 

"What? What did you say yes to?" 

He ignored the shouting outside, knowing that they would come in soon enough. He couldn't make himself leave Daniel's side, even though his own legs felt like water right now. Daniel looked up at him and Jack was taken back by the fear radiating from his eyes. 

"I...I...said y-yes." Tears streamed down pale cheeks and Jack tightened his grip on Daniel's shoulders. "I-I'm sorry..." Daniel's eyes rolled back and he collapsed into Jack's arms, dragging the two men down together to the floor. 

The colonel grunted as they landed hard, his arms tight around Daniel so the young man wouldn't roll away. Just behind him, the door flew open and he could hear Teal'c shouting enquiries at them, but he didn't reply. Jack just drew Daniel closer, until the young man's head lolled against his shoulder and he rocked him slowly, wishing desperately that he could make the shaking stop. 

"It's... it's okay." Jack's voice cracked. "I swear to you... it's okay..." 

Daniel was pulled away from him then, and Jack started to fight the bastard who would dare try to take Daniel away from his protection. But then he saw the concerned look on Teal'c's dark face and stopped. 

"Are you well, O'Neill?" Teal'c asked, a flurry of activity going on behind him. 

No, Jack wanted to say, trying to stand. The spots that had been lurking came back for a moment, then surged forward, and he didn't feel Teal'c grip his shoulders, as he yielded to them. 

* * *

Janet Fraiser wanted to sit down somewhere, bury her head in her arms and let out the sob that had been choking her since day one. 

But there was too much to do. 

Too much to... heal. 

But Doctor Janet Fraiser was only human. 

Blood could be washed away. Cuts could be stitched up. Bones could be taped and mended. Burns could be soothed away. 

_But what do you do about the haunted eyes, the tears that come during sleep, and the trembling of hands, too thin to even hold onto the spoon?_

She had watched as Sanders had woken up, disoriented, asking about his men. She had watched Tesh regain consciousness, horrified by his actions, and be placed under isolation in a room next to Smith. She had watched Daniel wake up, confused, no memory of what had happened, so that he had collapsed into Jack's arms distraught. And she had watched Jack revive, demanding despite a badly bruised throat, to be let up and resume his vigil by his friend's bedside. 

Yes, she was only human. 

Yet here she was in the meeting room, feeling pinned under the anxious gazes of Sam, Teal'c and General Hammond, all hoping she had all the answers. She only had some. 

"I made..." When did her voice become so worn? "...A comparison of the blood samples I took from Smith and Tesh." 

Janet passed the folder around the table. Doctor Warner took out another folder and gave it to General Hammond. 

"We took the results from when they first returned from P7J973 and then after they... woke up." Warner flipped through the contents, the others following him with their copies. Janet just sat there, willing to let her co-worker take rein for now. "The blood tests came back normal upon their return, but after their... incidents." 

_Incidents, my foot. They came back to life,_ Janet thought as Warner continued. 

The man ran a hand through graying thick hair, visibly upset by the results. 

"There was a... different set of... proteins found in their blood." 

"It didn't show up at all in the beginning?" Sam turned her question towards Janet. 

"No." Janet couldn't stop herself from snapping that response. 

She took a deep breath, looked over to Sam who just nodded sympathetically, and continued. 

"We think the protein was fused into their blood cells, ghosting as an additional protein code that we would dismiss as normal. It didn't... activate until after death." 

"And?" General Hammond said, trying to follow the medical terminology. 

"The protein... somehow... rejuvenated the blood cell activity... almost like shock treatment, thus reviving the patient." 

"That's all it does?" Sam asked dubiously. 

"No," Janet said flatly. "We found it clones itself during it's idle state and, when activated, releases a... hallucinogen into the bloodstream." 

"So Smith...and Tesh..." Sam said, exchanging a look with Teal'c. 

"...were under the influence of a drug that we couldn't detect before." 

"And are they still under the influence of this drug?" Hammond asked, frowning at the news. 

"It's still in their blood stream. But it's slowly dying on its own." Janet's jaw clenched. "Once the adrenaline levels of the body lower, the proteins start breaking down." 

"Like Cassandra's bomb," Teal'c surmised. Janet paused, memory flitting across her mind. 

"Yes. In no time, that protein would be nonexistent. We wouldn't have been able to find it later on in a checkup or..." Janet swallowed. "...in an autopsy." 

"Wait." Sam sat up straighter. "Daniel..." Her eyes widened as she recalled. "He... his heart stopped twice. Once when we were on P7J973 and a second time when we came through the Stargate." 

"I know," Janet said softly. "We found traces of it in his bloodstream, but it's slowly dying. Perhaps the body had to be... dead long enough for the proteins to clone themselves enough for their spreading throughout the system to be successful." She smiled briefly. "Like in Sanders, they'll be gone soon." 

"So..." Sam's voice sounded a little breathless. "It's over then?" 

_Not quite_ , Janet thought sadly back at Jack's vigil. 

+++++++++++++++++++++ 

_"So...you're going?" Sara said, barely containing the despair in her voice as she watched her husband pack. Her eyes glanced back over to the letter with the official stamp, which lay discarded on the bed. It would probably tell her more about where he was going than he had._

_"It'll only be a month or so."_

_Jack shoved more shirts than he probably would ever need; more for the excuse to avoid looking his wife in the eye._

_"I'll be back."_

_Sara covered her mouth, trying to hold back on her tears. Jack could see them though, in the reflection of the dresser mirror. It was the same look she had when she had found him in a stupor in the middle of the night._

_"I can't do this any more," Sara whispered. "I've tried to... understand, but I haven't been much help at all and you're not letting me help you-"_

_"I'm fine."_

_Jack started mashing the shirts down in his duffel bag; pulling out some, and then putting them back in again._

_"It didn't look like you were fine when I woke up every night to find you gone somewhere."_

_"I had a few bad nights-"_

_"They were *all* bad nights!" His wife sat down on the edge of the bed and Jack froze. "All of them. Ever since you came back. You..."_

_"I'm fine."_

_"You're running away."_

_Jack turned his head, looking at his wife angrily._

_"You don't understand!"_

_"Then make me understand!" Sara shouted back. "I...I can't keep doing this, John. I can't keep coming home to find the place in shambles, to have you pull away from me when you wake up from another nightmare, Charlie can't-" She stopped at Jack's glare. "Charlie... we... you're destroying yourself and taking us with you."_

_"What are you trying to say?" Jack whispered._

_"That... if you leave... you might be coming home to an empty house." Sara couldn't finish. Jack's face told her that he understood completely. So she left the bedroom, sat in Charlie's bedroom, glad that her son was in school so he wouldn't see this, crying when she heard the door slam minutes later._

"Nothing was ever the same after that, Danny," Jack finished. He sighed, watching Daniel's eyelids twitch in sleep. He didn't know why he was telling Daniel about that. "We tried. She tried. But nothing really became... better until maybe a year and a half before the Abydos mission and then..." 

_A gunshot that I will hear for the rest of my life._

Daniel was still silent, drugged into complacency. Jack absently rubbed the inner skin on Daniel's wrist, feeling the slow, steady pulse held within. He remembered the stark wide-eyed fear in his friend's eyes when had Daniel turned away from the mirror. Jack wondered if the same look had been in his eyes after his nightmares. He didn't know. Jack had never bothered to look in the mirror long enough to check. 

It gave Jack chills to think that Daniel might have to do the same. 

_Damn it. Hasn't he gone through enough?_ Jack thought angrily. _Someone up there is obviously not keeping score here and balancing the scales properly!_ He pulled away from Daniel's hand, fearing his rage might tighten his hand into a fist. 

Daniel stirred, mumbling to himself, his brow furrowed, as his hands twisted the blankets. His feet kicked restlessly and the blankets were pushed to the side. Jack smiled briefly. Daniel looked like a restless kid. 

"N-no..." 

Jack's smile faded. A restless kid with nightmares. 

"No..." Daniel moaned, his head shaking left and right in denial. 

Jack got up and snagged a corner of the blanket, covering Daniel again before the young man could register the cold. He frowned when Daniel began to shiver anyway. 

Jack could see Daniel's lips moving, mouthing a name silently. He felt his heart clench when he realized Daniel was calling out his name. 

_"He was calling for you. He was calling for you all the time, wouldn't stop when they tried to shut him up, wouldn't stop!"_

Calling out his name and Jack wasn't there to help him. 

"I am so sorry, Danny," Jack murmured, his hand on the young man's shoulder. 

He felt something tug in his chest, seeing the young man trying to burrow deeper in the blankets, trying to hide, trying to forget. 

"Few years ago..." Jack whispered. "I wanted so much to forget. But all I could do was remember." 

And now he was going to have to make Daniel do the same. 

"Let me apologize in advance now," Jack's voice dropped lower and lower. "For what I'm going to put you through You'll probably hate me for the rest of your life." 

Daniel shifted slightly, his head half concealed by the covers. 

"You'll probably wake up screaming every other night," Jack continued, his voice cracking. 

Daniel moaned as hearing him. Jack squeezed his shoulder and he calmed down almost immediately. 

"And on other nights, you probably won't be able to sleep at all." 

Sitting down again, tucking in the edges of the blanket, Jack dropped his head into his hands. 

"And then they'll come even when you're awake." 

Tears wetted Daniel's pale cheeks. Jack sighed softly. Even in sleep, under the lull of sedatives, Daniel's memory tormented him. He took a tissue and gently wiped the tears away, feeling a surge of protectiveness when Daniel whimpered, turning his head closer to the hand. 

"But it'll get better," Jack continued hoarsely. "It'll get better, so that one day you'll be able to look around and not see the walls morph into another place, that you won't need all the lights on, that every loud noise you hear won't have you running for cover." 

_"P-promise?" Daniel whispered, his body visibly relaxing._

Jack could see those blue eyes, half glazed with pain, filled with the certainty that anything Jack said was gold. 

"Promise," Jack whispered. 

* * *

The stone tablet glowed once then died down to a dull brown, muddy in color. The owner of the stone, Tery'ka frowned. 

It did not bode good news. 

"Selmac," he said softly, turning his head towards a man in his fifties. "What should we do then?" 

In the dual voice effect of a Go'uald with its host, Selmac replied as he took the tablet. 

"We must inform the others. Find her before she can make use of this piece of technology." 

"She may try again to rebuild," Tery'ka pointed out. 

"But we do not know where she is." Selmac frowned. "We've lost contact with our operative inside. Our man may be dead." 

"But if the rumors are true..." Tery'ka hedged. "Then we could use them to find her-" 

Eyes glowed briefly and Jacob Carter emerged instead. 

"Now hold on a minute!" he started angrily. "We can't just go around using them whenever we feel like it!" 

Tery'ka frowned with disapproval. It wasn't like Selmac to allow the Tau'ri to jump forward. 

"The Tok'ra's purpose is to-" 

"Stop the system lords, I know." Jacob waved his hand at the Tok'ra. "But I'm also here to make sure the system lords aren't going to take my people and make them into slaves!" Jacob paused. "And this... thing would most certainly do that." 

"What do you propose?" Tery'ka asked thoughtfully. 

"Let me go there, find out who the target is and who is the one to do it. Let me stop them before that happens. Maybe-" 

"I will go with you," Tery'ka decided. 

"What?" 

Tery'ka motioned towards the stone tablet. 

"If what I read there is true, then she will be waiting for him to return, for him to do the task in front of her. We could use this chance to follow him and stop her once and for all." 

Jacob shook his head. 

"Too risky. We can't have them-" 

"There is no other way," Tery'ka told him, handing over the tablet. "Selmac already knows what needs to be done. I think she allowed you to speak in order to understand this." 

Jacob scowled, taking the stone. He waved a smooth pebble like device over it and watched as the symbols wavered to his language. The frown faded and he gawked at the message. 

Tery'ka eyed the human. 

"We leave at dawn." 

Jacob just nodded numbly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Original note: As the story progresses, the more I learn about PTSD and I have to make at least an acknowledgement to the brave men and women who forged the battle lines, protect this country, and suffer the pain that we as citizens could never, ever be able to repay. Thank you all.


	3. Chapter 3

Jack watched Daniel pick at his food for the fourth day in a row and sighed. 

"I know it's not the greatest delicacy in the world, Daniel, but you gotta eat it anyway." 

Blinking, Daniel looked up with a tired smile. 

"I'm just not hungry, Jack." 

"Like you weren't hungry yesterday and the day before ?" 

Jack crossed his arms, glaring at his friend on the hospital bed. Daniel continued making circles with his vegetables, twirling the spoon in his fingers. Daniel shrugged and then winced. 

"Back still hurting ?" Jack asked casually, watching Daniel's expression. 

Something flitted across Daniel's face. 

"Um...yeah..." 

He sighed, putting down the utensil, pushed away the table extension from over him and leaned back into the pillows. 

"Daniel." 

"Later," Daniel mumbled. 

He rubbed his eyes wearily, dropping his hands immediately so his fingers wouldn't brush across the wounds along his temples. Jack noticed this but didn't say a word. 

"How... how're the others doing ?" Daniel asked carefully. 

Jack paused, remembering checking on Tesh and Smith earlier. 

"Good. They're recovering." He thought back to Sanders, undergoing physical therapy. "Sanders is in rehab right now." 

"Oh." 

Nodding towards Daniel, Jack continued. 

"You could use a go at the gym, too." He didn't like the way the gown on his friend looked big and baggy. Fingers, already slender before, now looked skeletal. Jack's study drifted up to the face and his jaw clenched as he realized that the cheekbones had now become gaunt. "Or... you could go see them. They've been asking about you." 

"Maybe later." Daniel picked at the material of his blanket that was covering his legs. Aside from his fingers, Daniel was very still, as if glued to the bed. 

The older man watched this for a bit, feeling very much that he wanted to leave the room but he knew if he left, it was just going to be harder to come back in again. 

_"I said I don't want to talk to him," Jack snapped back at Sara._

_His wife flinched but held her ground. She watched her husband pace the living room back and forth, hands restlessly going from his hair to his pockets._

_"Well, you can't keep up like this either." Sara kept her voice calm, hiding her shaking hands by pretending to wipe them on the dishrag. "Every night you're not sle-"_

_"I said no." Jack's voice dropped dangerously. Sara actually stepped back a bit and he realized with shock that it was because of him._

_"Damn." He walked over to her, grabbed the hands he saw hiding behind the soft cloth and squeezed them gently. "I'm sorry." He could feel the trembling in her hands within his._

_"Will you at least talk to him?" Sara whispered. "Doctor Kl-"_

_Jack dropped her hands quickly and backed away._

_"I don't need a shrink to tell me how I feel !"_

_"He's just there to listen. He's a military psychiatrist so you don't have to worry about-"_

_"I said no." Jack walked over to the cabinet where he knew familiar bottles were quietly waiting for him._

_"You're going to talk to that instead ?" Sara's voice held a bitter tone._

_"I'm fine, Sara."_

_"Fine when you have a bottle."_

_Jack stared at the glass doors, into the compartments where the bottles were._

_"Just let me deal with this in my own way. It'll pass."_

_He opened the door, the hinges creaking so loud that he almost didn't hear Sara leave the room._

"Jack ?" Daniel poked at his arm tentatively, eyes staring at him worriedly. 

Shaking himself out of his daze, mentally cursing himself for the indulgence, Jack grinned. 

"Sorry. Not trying to say you're boring company here." 

"Shouldn't there be... stuff for you to do ?" 

Jack shrugged. 

"We're on standby for the time being, Daniel." 

"Oh." 

Jack looked away for a moment, focussing on the IV still attached to Daniel. 

"I... want to ask you... about what happened..." 

He could hear the bed shift as Daniel stiffened. Jack refused to turn around. If he did, he would see the same frightened look on his friend's face, the minute shivering and the pale hands that were twisting the covers. If he saw that again, Jack was going to drop the questions and do the same routine - smile, pat the hand, say never mind, drop the subject. 

"W-what..." Daniel swallowed, staring at the back of Jack's head before dropping his gaze to his lap. "I don't remember anything, Jack." 

"I could show you SG-5's report, Daniel," Jack offered quietly. "Sanders doesn't remember much, but he did recall most of his surveillance before they att-" 

"No." Daniel's voice cracked. "I think I have a pretty good idea from this," he waved towards his own bandaged wrists, nodding behind him towards his back. "Of what h-happened to me. I don't think... I don't want to know any more." 

"I don't think you can stop yourself from remembering, Daniel." God knows I tried. 

"I'm not," Daniel murmured, his eyes on his lap. 

"But you're not trying," Jack forced himself to say. "Daniel, you can't just-" 

"I'm not doing anything here !" Daniel's voice rose in panic. "I just d-don't remember ! I'm not doing this on purpose ! Why do you think I'm doing this on purpose ?" 

"I'm not saying that you are-" 

"I just don't remember, Jack !" Daniel's hands yanked at the blanket's edge as his words picked up speed. "I just don't. I tried, but I can't get anything. There's nothing there to retrieve and I-" 

Jack grabbed Daniel's hands to still them. The young man froze. Jack leaned forward until he was looking directly into his friend's eyes. 

"No one is blaming you for not remembering. No one." 

"I-I just don't..." Daniel turned his eyes pleadingly towards Jack. He pulled his hands away from the older man's grip. "I just don't. Okay ?" Daniel turned slightly on his side. He leaned back into the pillows. 

Jack understood the stiff posture. 

"Tired ?" 

"Yes," Daniel answered softly. "I want to sleep." 

_No you don't, because each time you do, you end up either screaming for me or for anyone to come help you and then you're up the rest of the night or until Doc gives you something to sleep._

"Okay," Jack said quietly. "Get some sleep. I'll be right here." 

"You don't have to," the voice floated from over Daniel's shoulder. 

"I know." 

"You could go." Daniel's voice went lower and lower. "You don't have to baby-sit me." 

"I know and I'm not." 

"I'm fine, Jack." 

Jack smiled sadly at his own words being flung back at him, oddly realizing this was how his family had felt. 

"I know, Danny." 

"I'm...f-fine..." Daniel's voice cracked. 

"Get some sleep." Jack pulled the covers up to Daniel's shoulders. The man tensed at first, but then slowly relaxed. "I'll be here when you wake up." 

Daniel nodded, still not turning around. After a while, Jack could see his breathing slow to sleep and was getting ready to settle down in the cot Fraiser had set up for him for a nap. 

"T-thanks, Ja'k," Daniel murmured sleepily. 

Jack patted Daniel's arm, looking sadly at the hunched up posture under the covers and whispered, "It's okay, Danny. Get some sleep." 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Jacob Carter wearily pinched the bridge of his nose. His stomach churned at the smells of blood and decay but he took another step in. P7J973 looked innocent enough, but Tery'ka had detected the entrance to the underground complex hours later, beyond the surrounding forest. 

He just didn't expect to find what was inside. 

The hallway was dotted with doors leading to dark cramped cells that reeked of dying occupants inside. But not all of them. 

Just five. 

"Five," Jacob murmured. "God damn it. So it's true." 

"She broke them after all," Tery'ka said unsympathetically. 

"We don't know that. We are a pretty stubborn race." 

"And she is a stubborn power hungry monster." 

Jacob looked around at the cell he was standing in, his nostrils flaring at the stench. He could see spots of dried blood in one corner and it made him turn away. 

"I've found the chamber," Tery'ka said flatly. It was devoid of any feeling and Jacob was having trouble believing that he was one of the good guys. 

"Where is it ?" He followed the To'kra leader down the hallway, then to the left until it opened up to a massive room. He skidded to a halt at the entrance. "My God." 

Tery'ka nodded. 

"Here is where she turned them." 

The shackles hung rusty red on the ceiling, telling silently of its prisoners, swinging slightly in the damp, humid air. The torches stood at each corner unlit. Jacob lit some and the room was bathed in light. As soon as it was, the man wished he hadn't lit the torches at all. 

Discarded whips with stuff clinging to them that Jacob suspected was flesh, lay on the ground, dropped in the haste of escape. Irons, broken and stained, were on a pile shoved in one of the corners. Rats ran rampant around the room, unconcerned about the visitors, squealing, snarling at each other. But what got to Jacob the most was the smell. 

The smell of blood. 

People had cried in here. 

Jacob didn't smell the tears that might have been shed but the scent of blood that lingered in the air told him all about them. 

"She broke them after all," Tery'ka repeated. He bent down and picked up a broken cup. Sniffing it cautiously, his eyes flashed and the host Ry'thoth emerged. In a softer voice, one filled with compassion, Ry'thoth handed the cup over to Jacob. 

"I smell nimertha. She was here after all." 

Jacob took it and took a whiff, grimacing as the smell they taught him to look out for was recognized. 

"Damn." 

"We have to find them, seek the one out and use him to find her." Ry'thoth paused. "She has the device. With it, the nimertha could stay invisible and return at the time she requested." 

"I don't like it." Jacob shook his head. "I don't like using them as bait and-" 

"She will make use of the device," Ry'thoth reminded Jacob. "Or worse... sell it to the highest bidder in exchange for an army." 

"I thought you guys destroyed all of them after news of Ra was killed !" Jacob snapped. 

"She might have obtained his favor and gift before his death." 

"She was away when it happened," Jacob murmured. The realization of it darkened his eyes. "Damn. There's no other way, then." 

"She must be found." 

Jacob looked around and was about to check the time when he realized that he no longer wore a watch. _Habits_ , he thought ruefully. 

"Let me get the GTO and we'll notify them." 

"We can't." 

"Why the hell not ?" Jacob demanded. 

"Even when the nimertha does take over, the memory will still be there. If the one were aware that his identity was in danger, we may never catch him in time or follow him to her. We have to find some way to go there without alarming the one." 

"Damn. We can't just go there and say we were passing through ! We have to give them something !" 

Eyes glowed briefly and Tery'ka was back. 

"Shall we go ?" 

* * *

_They were coming again._

He gasped as he fell to the floor. Fighting, struggling, he fought the hands that were on him, barely enough air drawn in to scream. Kicking, twisting, he tried to escape. One hand trapped his wrist and he cried out in alarm, twisting away, trying to burrow into the walls of his cell, to hide in the shadows- 

"Daniel !" 

_No ! Stay away from me ! No !_

"Daniel !" 

_Have to hide ! Have to hide !_

"God damn it, Daniel ! Wake up !" 

_Jack ?_

Opening his eyes, Daniel saw black cloth and olive green fabric, rubbing against his cheek. Focusing, he soon realized that his head was on Jack's lap. 

"You awake ?" Jack asked gruffly, still shaken. 

He had dozed off briefly when he heard a strangled cry out. He got up and found that Daniel had fell to the floor, instantly curling up to a tight ball, huddling against the wall by his bed. The young man fought his every attempt to get him up and back on the bed, whimpering as hands touched him. So Jack pulled Daniel closer, head cushioned by his lap, and he shook his shoulders, shouting his name. 

"Ja'k?" Daniel whispered, head turning a bit until he saw the chiseled features of the colonel. Eyes still blurry, they looked dazed as he tried to concentrate on the flicking image before him. "What happened?" 

"Bad dream." Jack said shortly. He looked up and shook his head at the sight of Doctor Fraiser by the door. The doctor, seeing that Daniel was calm now, pursed her lips but said nothing as she slipped back and closed the door quietly. 

Click. 

Daniel shuddered as he heard the door closed. Jack placed a hand on his forehead, smoothing back the damp strands of sandy colored hair. 

"It's okay. It's just the door." Jack paused. "How about getting up? Floor's cold." 

Daniel curled tighter within himself, arms wrapped around himself, violently shaking his head. Jack sighed, patting his shoulder. 

"You'll sleep better on the bed, Danny." 

"No..." Daniel whimpered, his mind still lost in the darkness that surrounded him. "They'll see me..." 

"Who?" 

"I...I don't know..." Daniel's voice broke into a soft sob. Jack brushed a hand against his hair, carefully avoiding the red scabs along the sides of his temples. 

"Okay. Okay. We'll stay right here then, okay?" 

Daniel nodded, his eyes already fluttering close. 

"I mean, what the hell, I wasn't thinking about standing anytime soon, right?" Jack joked lightly. 

Daniel didn't laugh. He just sighed deeply, turning slightly so his face was facing away from Jack, but from the older man's angle; he could see the tears glistening just under the lashes. 

Jack cupped Daniel's cheek with his hand, turning the young man slightly so the head wouldn't roll off his lap. He winced as he felt the needles of legs too long at one position begin. Shrugging, Jack reached behind and grabbed the discarded blanket. He draped it carefully over Daniel, tucking it under his legs and over his feet, still bandaged to protect them from his burns. 

Shifting, Daniel opened his eyes again and stiffened. 

"Shh...it's okay. It's just me." 

"Dark..." 

"Your eyes are still sensitive to light. You hadn't been exposed to day-" 

Daniel's lower lip trembled as he rubbed his face into the blankets, his cheek scraping against Jack's thigh. 

"Dark..." 

Jack eyed the light switch, inches away from his fingers. 

"I'll turn them on. Hang on." 

He shuffled slightly, carefully of the bundle on his lap, but suddenly Daniel tensed, his hands frantically flung out in panic. 

"Sh...I'm not going anywhere. I'm just turning on the lights. See?" The room brightened a little to prove his point. "Better?" 

Daniel's eyes squinted. "Dark..." 

Jack turned the dimmer on brighter. "How's that?" 

Sighing, Daniel nodded. Jack breathed a sigh of relief. He settled back into position, his back against the side of the bed, and rested his hand on top of Daniel's head. Chills ran up his spine as he recalled a similar situation. 

_"They're coming." He said dully, the script too stale for him to inject some hope into it. Nevertheless, the words eased the lines of pain on the younger man's face and he curled to his side, head still on his lap and went to sleep._

_And for each and every day, he said the same lines, said the same lies, until that young man died._

Jack angrily wiped his sleeve against his eyes, cursing himself silently. _Damn it! He's not dying here! He just had a bad dream!_

Daniel stirred slightly, mumbling something under his breath. Jack stroked the clammy forehead, frowning at how cold it felt. The young man sighed, shifting a bit, curling tighter with the blankets wrapped around himself like a shield. 

Too tired to try and carry him back up the bed and reluctant to have anyone come in and startling Daniel, Jack laid his head back on the edge of the mattress and tried to sleep. But it was hard because he knew tomorrow; he was going to have to ask Daniel the same questions again. 

++++++++++++++++++++ 

"Janet?" Sam whispered as the doctor closed the door quietly. "How's Daniel? I heard-" 

"He's okay." Fraiser peered through the window, seeing the top of Jack's head against the bed edge. "He had a bad dream." 

"About what happened?" Sam asked hesitantly. Janet nodded. 

"I would assume so." Janet sighed in frustration. "I can't get close enough to Daniel to find out for sure." 

"I'm sure he'll help Daniel out with it." Sam was referring to Jack. 

Janet pursed her lips, not remarking to that. 

"What?" 

"Nothing." Janet just said. _It really isn't any of my business._

"Janet." 

"I just think..." Janet crossing her arms, walking away from the room. "Daniel's not going to open up even to Jack." 

"He just doesn't remember." Sam protested. "I'm sure once he remembers-" 

"He doesn't **want** to remember, Sam." Janet said abruptly. "There's a big difference between can't and won't." 

"I'm sure Jack-" 

"I'm not." Janet said abruptly. Sam stopped, staring at her in shock. "Look. There's obviously something going on here that we don't know about." She looked at the Captain tiredly. "Jack...the Colonel doesn't really look motivated or too anxious to get Daniel's memory going here." She sighed again. It seemed like she was doing that a lot. "I can understand the need to protect Daniel, to shield him. God knows I had my moments like that each time I walk into that room, but..." Janet glanced back down the hallway to where Daniel and Jack were. "Coddling him, telling him that it's okay when it's not, letting him drift into some corner of his mind will not help him!" 

"Daniel trusts him, Janet." Sam said softly. "I know the Colonel is not going to just sit by and let Daniel bury this all away. He's not going to violate that trust by doing that. He's always push Daniel hard for his own good. I'm sure he'll do the same this time. He...Daniel just needs to recover first. That's all." 

Fraiser looked resigned. "I hope so, Sam. Otherwise I'm really going to hate myself if I have to force myself to keep Jack out of this." She walked away, leaving Sam to mull over her words. 

* * *

"I'm really sorry, Terry," Tesh murmured, watching as Anderson rubbed his shoulder ruefully. The sergeant waved the apology off. 

"Hell, I get worse from tripping over Booker's mess," Anderson joked as he eyed General Hammond, who smiled briefly. He murmured goodbye to Tesh, before returning to his guarding post outside the isolation room. 

"Son, I know this is hard. But-" General Hammond started just as Doctor Warner entered the room to join him. 

"You want to know what I remember, sir," Tesh interrupted, meaning no disrespect. General Hammond nodded. 

"You've read Smith's report ?" 

"Yes sir. I agree with what Smith said. It helped fill in some... gaps for me, sir." Tesh paused; something flitted across his eyes. "Helped me remember some more too, sir." 

_"Hang in there, man," Smith whispered from his position on the floor as the guards took Tesh away. The soldier heard the door slam shut on his comrades before he was half dragged down the hall._

_Even with eyes that were swollen, barely open, Tesh could still make out the room he always passed, the one with the shackles, similar to the room he was always taken to. But for some reason, this room always drew his attention. As the guards took him down the hallway, the room drew his eye once more._

_A lone figure, standing by the doorway, laughed as he spoke in Go'uald. Tesh could hear a softer voice, liquid smooth, answering him back. As he was brought closer to the room, he heard Doctor Jackson moan and he was half tempted to call out to the man but remembered the last time - all it had got him and Jackson was extra lashes on their backs._

_It infuriated him that they were kept separate from Jackson. He hadn't seen the young scientist since they had first arrived through the Stargate. Even Sanders and Stone, who were kept apart from him and Smith for a while, were brought to the same cell a few days later..._

"That's right." Tesh stopped, his voice dull. "You said it was only three days." 

General Hammond nodded. Doctor Warner, who was in the room, asked quietly if Tesh needed to rest. The soldier shook his head. 

"Let me... finish while it's still in my head... before it gets jumbled up again." 

General Hammond and Doctor Warner looked at each other worriedly. 

_He saw the white hair on the man's head, almost glowing under the sparing light before he turned around and Tesh saw his eyes glow. Then the guards turned the corner and Tesh couldn't see them any more. As they fastened the irons on his wrists once more, one of the guards roughly tilted his head back and a foul smelling liquid in a dirty cup was poured down his throat._

"Next thing I knew," Tesh went on, his eyes glazing over with memory, "it was over and the guards dragged me out again." 

_Groaning as cuts on his feet scraped along the slimy floor, Tesh barely saw the room until they were practically standing right next to it. The guards stopped and Tesh fuzzily wondered if they were back at his cell again._

_Instead, he saw two guards emerging out of the chamber, guarding a slender woman who was leaving the room. She paused, turning back. A man, hidden in the shadows, came out with Doctor Jackson limp in his arms. Tesh moaned softly when he saw the vacant eyes of the scientist, staring at nothing, his chest unmoving..._

"Wait a minute," Warner interrupted. "Jackson was dead ?" He glanced over to Hammond with concern. 

"I thought he was," Tesh murmured. "But then when I woke up here, Sergeant Anderson told me that Doctor Jackson was alive." 

_"Be careful with him," she cautioned as the man readjusted his grip on the still form._

_The other man bowed his head slightly. When he lifted his head again, Tesh saw who it was._

_Colonel Jack O'Neill._

"What ?" General Hammond exclaimed, nearly dropping the recorder that was taping this. "You saw Colonel O'Neill ?" 

"Yes sir... or at least... I thought it was Colonel O'Neill." Tesh frowned. "The moment I saw him here, I thought he was the guy I saw before, but then it turned out to be him... or someone who looked like him." The soldier looked abashed. "And all I could think off was that the bastard deserved to die. It kept going in my head, over and over again." 

"This liquid," Warner interrupted, "that the guards gave you... was it a hallucinogen ?" 

"Beats the hell out of me." Tesh shrugged. "Each time they forced us to drink that shit, I blanked out, which was probably good." The soldier fingered the scars on his arms. "Remembered the pain when I woke, it probably would have been a hell of a lot worse had I been... awake to feel it coming." Tesh looked at himself again. "Damn... if I didn't know better, I should have been dead long ago." 

"We think the hidden drug found in all your bodies release a hallucinogen in your body and a charge to revive you after death," Warner explained. "Apparently, it also serves as a healing process, speeding up the normal rate of recovery." 

"Well... whatever it was..." Tesh frowned. "Must have done a number on my head, 'cause I could have sworn that was the Colonel over there. I can almost still hear it." 

"What ?" Hammond asked. 

The soldier's voice turned cold. 

"That Colonel O'Neill must die." 

* * *

_"Ja'k..." Daniel whispered between cracked lips, trying very hard not to move so the chains wouldn't dig deeper into his wrists._

_Jack stood there, staring stoically back at him._

_"Help me... please..."_

_Silent, Jack just watched as the guards came over to Daniel with the bucket of water. Daniel cringed, hissing as iron bit into flesh, as he tried to avoid the steaming water._

_"Ja'k..." Daniel pleaded again before the water hit._

_Hot water met blood and Daniel screamed, arching his back as pain racked his body once more, twisting as wounds ignited with shock. Jack just stood there watching, as soft laughter floated around the room. It actually sounded louder than Daniel's screams._

_"Do you not hate him ?" the voice taunted. "Do you not wish to make him suffer as you suffer now ?"_

_Daniel gasped, his body trembling from the strain. He could hear his heart hammering against his chest, slowing with each breath he struggled to take._

_"Do you not wish to kill him ?" the voice grew colder. It stepped closer, into the lone spotlight in front of him. Jack stood just at the edge of the darkness, watching silently as the slim figure approached Daniel. Jack did nothing as the person reached out and caressed his cheek._

_"N-no..." Daniel mumbled. "You're dead..."_

_"Perhaps... maybe this is all a dream. You would like that, wouldn't you ?"_

_"P-please..."_

_"He stands there and does nothing," the voice hissed as a smile curled on its beautiful face. "Do you not hate him for that ? He betrays you !"_

_"N-no !" Daniel screamed as he felt the whip again._

_"Believe me."_

_Fingers on his hair now, stroking the head as if he were a child._

_"Believe what my voice is telling you. He is not your friend. You feel hatred for him."_

_"N-no." Another lash._

_"You wish to kill him"_

_"L-lies..." Another._

_The fingers curled into a fist, yanking hard at his hair, pulling at his wounds, jerking his head back until he saw the ceiling draped with cobwebs._

_"What I tell you are not lies."_

_Daniel tried shaking his head in denial but only felt the grip grow harder until spots danced before his eyes._

_Thump thump._

_Daniel's heart was so loud now. It thundered in his ears._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_Thump thump._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_Thump..._

_The voice was by his ear now._

_"It will be yes, my sweet. We will have our vengeance."_

_Daniel felt himself fading and he hoped desperately for death to come before he answered, but the guards lashed out again and he heard himself beg and say-_

_Yes._

_He said yes._

_Thu..._

Daniel jerked awake, screaming. 

Jack sat up straighter, as a flailing hand caught him in the jaw. He tried to get Daniel to calm down but the young man had rolled off his lap and onto the ground, shivering as he tried to wrap his arms around his own body. 

"Daniel !" Jack grabbed his friend roughly by the arms, wincing as a bandaged foot kicked him in his side. He came up behind Daniel, pulling the man to his chest, his arms wrapped around Daniel's arms, pining them to his side, trapping the young man efficiently in his grasp. 

Daniel wailed as he tried to break free, still lost in whatever nightmare his mind had conjured up, his head thrashing left and right in denial. Jack just whispered into Daniel's ear over and over again, hoping his words would reach him. They didn't. Somehow, Daniel twisted free and Jack tripped over legs as he struggled to grab him again. Just then, the door flew open before Jack could yell out a warning not to let Daniel escape. 

Sam stood there, mouth opened in shock as she saw Jack grab Daniel once more, dropping to the floor, arms tight around his flailing body to keep it still. She didn't hesitate to rush over then, adding her own flow of soft words, hoping to reach her friend. Sam blinked away the hot tears that threatened to spill as she watched Daniel jerk away from her touch. 

"Daniel..." Jack murmured, one hand on Daniel's forehead, hoping his touch would bring him out like it had the last time. Daniel sobbed silently, too exhausted to fight any more, boneless against Jack's grip around his chest. 

The three sat there, on the floor, only their heavy breathing indicating that any of them were alive. Jack looked exhausted as he leaned back against the bed, arms still restraining his friend around the chest. Sam was the one with the hand on Daniel's forehead now and she murmured to him as she stroked in soothing circles. After a while, Daniel seemed to blink, looking around disorientated, then moaning when he realized it was only a dream. 

"Ja'k ?" Daniel called out hoarsely and he felt the arms around him loosen. 

"Yeah," Jack replied tiredly. 

"Dream ?" 

"Yeah." 

Sam moved her hand down to Daniel's arm now. 

"We're here, Daniel. It's going to be okay." 

She glanced over at Jack - she felt worried when she saw his narrowed eyes and set jaw and she wondered about Janet's words. Sam had dismissed them immediately. She knew the colonel would do the right thing. 

Right ? 

Daniel's body sagged a little and Jack's arm tightened around him to support him this time. He shifted slightly, shivering as the cold floor finally struck him. 

"I... died..." Daniel gasped softly and he began to pull away from his two friends. "I... oh my God... I died..." 

"Daniel, it was just a bad dream. You didn't die," Jack said but let go of Daniel anyway. He watched as the young man shuffled to the bed, clinging to the metal frame as he shivered. "Why don't you let us help you back up on the bed ?" 

"I died, Ja'k," Daniel repeated, refusing to move. "I... God... after I said y-yes... I... died..." The trembling increased and Daniel clutched onto the frame with a wild desperation. "I couldn't.." 

"Daniel !" Jack said sharply. The young man's head whipped up, his eyes wide. Jack looked Daniel right in the eye. "It was only a dream. Okay ?" 

"Sir, he might have been-" 

"It was only a dream," Daniel repeated dully, his shoulders dropping a bit. 

"Come on," Jack said softly, ignoring the stares from Carter. "Let's get you back up on the bed here. Okay ?" 

"...'Kay." 

With Sam's help, the two got Daniel to his feet. The anthropologist swayed slightly, his hand tight around Jack and Sam's forearms. Weaving like grass in the wind, Daniel slowly reached the bed before he paused. 

"They're not going to find you, Daniel." Jack understood Daniel's hesitation. "It's okay. You need your rest here. Carter's going to stay with you for a while, okay ?" 

Sam recovered from her surprise and just nodded. 

"I'll be right here, Daniel." 

She smiled at Daniel as they eased him down onto the bed. She said nothing as Jack carefully draped the blanket over Daniel's legs, covering the bandaged feet, before drawing it up to Daniel's chest. The young man looked at Jack anxiously while the colonel did this. 

"Where are you going ?" Daniel blurted out. Then realizing how that sounded, Daniel ducked his head, "Sorry. I didn't mean to... I... I'm okay... there's no need for you to stay and..." 

Jack dropped a hand on Daniel's shoulder, shaking it until he lifted his head again. 

"I'll be back, Danny. I just have to get something... done first." 

Daniel looked like he was going to say again that Jack didn't have to, but the trembling of his fingers as he clutched the edge of his covers betrayed him and Daniel just nodded numbly. Jack paused and it looked as though he was going to change his mind when he sat down at the edge of the bed. 

"I'll wait until you fall asleep, Danny." 

"Don't know... why..." Daniel murmured, blinking rapidly as he struggled to stay awake. "Feel... so scared... Ja'k... I..." 

"It's okay." Jack took hold of his wrist, absently rubbing the inside of it and waited until Daniel's eyes fluttered closed. He watched Daniel's breathing even out before he dropped the hand he was holding. 

"Sir ?" 

"I'll be back, Carter," Jack responded tiredly. "Gotta go talk to someone here." 

He got up from the bed. The bed shifted a little and Daniel stirred uneasily. Sam, seeing that Jack wasn't going to do anything, reached out and brushed back Daniel's hair with her fingers. 

"Sir-" Carter started, but when she turned around, Jack was gone. 

* * *

It happened when they left the underground complex. 

Jacob paused at the crest of the ridge, taking a deep breath of the fruity scent of the breeze, in an attempt to cleanse the stench of the dark tunnels inside the hidden structure. He eyed the calm landscape, the ruins of a village down below. 

_Looks can be deceiving_ , he thought, remembering the vile mixture of smells. He turned to his companion to ask something when he heard a low whine just behind the ridge. Between two distant valleys, a Go'uald death glider rose like a predator out of hiding, screaming as it soared towards their direction. 

They barely had time to even look for cover when it swooped down and started firing. Twin rows of dirt shot up with them standing in between. The two men didn't try to turn around and fire at the craft, their only intent to reach the edge of the forest that surrounded the village and the only thing that stood in their way of the Stargate. Jacob cursed as he pulled the other To'kra down behind some trees. 

"I thought you said this planet was deserted !" Jacob shouted above the din of his comrade firing his weapon at the death glider. The To'kra cursed when the blast didn't even faze the craft. 

"We must have missed another complex here !" Tery'ka replied. He flinched as a tree exploded a few feet away, sending splinters of wood flying in all directions. 

"Why the hell are they even still sticking around here ? The SG teams must have come through here to get their comrades already. Why take the risk of being discovered ?" 

Tery'ka shook his head. 

"I do not know." He stiffened when he heard another glider in the distance, joining forces. "We can not stay here." 

"Big news !" Jacob said sarcastically as he eyed the edge of the forest. "Look, we better split up and try and outrun those things ! Just head for the Stargate and get to General George Hammond. Tell him about the nimertha ! You have the code ?" He shoved the device that was given to the To'kra in case they needed to reach the Tau'ri into Tery'ka's hand. 

"Yes." He looked at Jacob with a slight frown. 

"Good. I got mine, too. Look, if they get you, destroy that thing otherwise-" 

"Understood." Tery'ka's eyes glowed briefly and Ry'thoth emerged. "Good luck, Jacob. Safe passage, Selmac." 

Jacob's eyes glowed and Selmac responded with a brief smile. 

"Thank you, Ry'thoth. Now hurry. The Tau'ri must be warned about this ! Either one of us must try and reach the Tau'ri." 

Nodding, Ry'thoth counted to three and then ran as fast as he could, darting in between trees. Selmac followed the man's tracks before the glowing eyes dulled and Jacob returned. 

"Good luck," the former general murmured. He looked down at his To'kra clothing, grimacing. "What I wouldn't give for a kevlar vest and a bazooka right now." He scowled at the death gliders, which were splitting up. One followed Tery'ka and the other circled the forest, seeking him out. 

"Okay, kids, let's see if you can out smart an Air Force General," Jacob smirked as he slipped into the forest, using the shadows to conceal himself. Zigzagging, making a deliberate trail away from the Stargate, Jacob hoped that if there were any ground forces, they wouldn't realize his plan. He could hear the distant hum of weapons firing and he could only hope that Ry'thoth or Tery'ka, he could never figure out what to call them, was about to escape unharmed. 

Jacob dropped down a ditch, carved from a small trickling stream and followed the flow of water away from the Stargate. He could hear the glider above him, shrieking its displeasure when it couldn't find him under the cover of the trees. He smirked again. 

"Not so great now, huh ?" Jacob chuckled. He froze, however, when he heard the familiar whine of Stargate rings being activated, just beyond his cover, in the clearing where the village was. 

Jacob's face darkened. 

"Shit." Reinforcements. "This isn't good." He darted away from the sound, his hearing picking up the sounds of Jaafa crashing through the underbrush. 

_One thing about these guys_ , Jacob thought as he picked up his pace, no longer concerned with stealth, _these guys don't know the meaning of subtle_. The guards were loud, even from afar and Jacob could easily track their movements behind him, turning where he could avoid them. 

He didn't realize that he was being herded like cattle. 

Skidding to a halt, Jacob gaped at the precipice below his feet, a yawning drop below him, a huge river crashing against the rough walls. He turned around, about to head the other way when he saw the Jaafa bursting through the bushes, staff weapons aimed right at him. 

Scowling, the man stood there. He couldn't hear the death gliders anymore. Hopefully that meant either Tery'ka escaped or that they didn't know he had another To'kra with him. 

The guards pointed the opened weapons steadily, the heads blossoming and sparking with deadly charge. Jacob counted five. That was five too many. 

"I am honored the To'kra have made an appearance here for my audience," a deceptively soft voice said from behind. The guards stepped aside, making way for their leader, shadowed within a soft red cloak. Their leader made no move to remove the cloak, but Jacob already knew who it was. 

Jacob grunted, unimpressed. 

"I'm not here to be the welcoming committee." 

"Where are the others ?" the leader asked. 

"There are no others." 

The leader tilted its head, studying him. 

"You are lying." 

Jacob shrugged. 

"Not my fault if you're so distrusting." 

"You will tell." The voice was confident. 

"With your nimertha ?" 

The voice grew hard and Jacob could see eyes flashing from inside the hood. 

"How did you know about the nimertha ?" 

Grinning, Jacob just shrugged again. 

"I also know about what you took from Ra." 

Soft laughter from the leader as a hand waved casually, dismissing the piece of information. 

"It does not matter." An order was snapped to the guards, and one of them stepped forward, closer to Jacob. The general automatically took a step back, his heel in line with the edge of the cliff. 

The leader laughed again. 

"Your tongue is as sharp as another Tau'ri I know, but like him, you will be dead." 

"Don't feel like being dead yet," Jacob quipped. 

"You will tell me everything about the To'kra," the voice continued, unperturbed. 

Jacob smiled, his eyes dark as he made his decision. 

"I don't think so." He spun around abruptly. As he heard the staff weapons begin to hum, he jumped. 

_Sorry, kid_ , Jacob thought briefly of his daughter Sam. A hot piercing pain burned his shoulder blade before he plunged to the rushing rapids below. The second he hit the water, darkness took him as swiftly as the waves did and he barely had time to give a silent prayer in hopes that his comrade was able to reach his friends in time. 

* * *

_Jack stood in front of the glass window in the conference room, his arms crossed, his face scowling at the Stargate below._

_The colonel's dress uniform jacket lay draped over one of the chairs, the metal buttons gleaming under the dim lighting._

_Teal'c paused before coming in, uncertain of what kind of welcome he would receive for his intrusion. The man had been short, his words clipped as he passed through the crowds when the memorial service was over. It was only by chance, glancing up at the observation booth above, that Teal'c had realized where O'Neill had gone. As he had seen many do, he knocked on the door first._

_"O'Neill."_

_Jack grunted a greeting, his eyes still on the Stargate. He said nothing as Teal'c walked up beside him, then stood by his side. The Jaafa observed the last of the soldiers, as they were removing the podium and the stands where the flagpoles had been inserted. The flower petals from the wreath that O'Neill and Captain Carter had sent through the Stargate were swept away from the top of the ramp._

_Some of the soldiers, still in their dark blue uniforms, were lingering below, talking in soft voices as they watched the cleanup. Despite the activity, the embarkation room below was unusually quiet, the mood sober. It was a familiar atmosphere that Teal'c understood. It was universal perhaps, in all cultures._

_The time after a funeral._

_"Daniel Jackson would have been honored by the words you have said, O'Neill." Teal'c said, remembering the speech the colonel had given, simple in its text, yet the Jaafa had felt every single word._

_He watched O'Neill as he sighed, running a hand through his hair. The Jaafa wondered if the team leader could still hear Daniel Jackson screaming for help as he was burning, as he did._

_"Would have had his jaw on the floor if he had heard me," Jack muttered. "Never really said any of those things in front of him." Turning a bit, Jack gave the Jaafa a sidelong glance. "Isn't that strange of us... humans ? To never say a kind word about someone until they're gone ?"_

_"Daniel Jackson knew," Teal'c said positively. "He knew you were always... concerned for his welfare."_

_Jack sighed softly, straightening out his shoulders tiredly, only for them to slump again. The colonel looked at Teal'c for a moment and the Jaafa caught a glimpse of tired brown eyes before they turned back to the Stargate below._

_"I wish I had said something before." Jack paused. "Up there... during the eulogy, all I could remember was how many times I snapped at him, yelled at him, ignored him..." He rubbed his face tiredly. "Damn it."_

_"Daniel Jackson knew," Teal'c repeated._

_"I wish I could be so certain." The colonel stepped away from the window. "But I'll never know now, will I ?" He waved a hand angrily towards the Stargate. "Because that... thing... took away my chance to know for sure and just left me with more questions than I care to think about."_

_With that, Jack grabbed his jacket from the chair with a sharp jerk, sending the furniture spinning on its axis, rushed past Teal'c, and headed out the door._

_Teal'c eyed the doorway his friend had departed through, then looked back at the Stargate. His face was unreadable as he turned away. Teal'c needed to get ready for this... wake... Captain Carter had told him about._

Eyeing the familiar scene before him, Teal'c said nothing as he joined Jack at the window, once more standing in front of the glass, watching the activity in the Stargate room below. 

Jack didn't acknowledge the newcomer, nor did he move aside to make room. He stood there, arms crossing his chest, staring at the Stargate with bitterness on his face. Teal'c just stood there, needing no words himself, and understanding the colonel's need for quiet. He could see the tension in the human's shoulders, the jaw clenched in internal anger and he suspected some of the anger was not directed solely at the Stargate. 

It was also at himself. 

In the beginning, when he was still testing the waters, trying to learn about his new human comrades, Teal'c had been puzzled by the concern O'Neill had shown towards Daniel Jackson. Teal'c had to admit that the scholar was more vulnerable, with his lack of training or experience in combat and of the harsh cruelties of war, but the Jaafa had also come to realize that Daniel Jackson's lack of a heart hardened by battle and death was also his strength. 

But sometimes, even now, after all this time together as a team, it was easy to forget that. 

The Jaafa could almost see the weight of burden the colonel took on himself for allowing Daniel Jackson to be a part of SG-1. Teal'c suspected that O'Neill wasn't even aware of shouldering the responsibility, acting automatically in putting Daniel Jackson within the circle of his protection. 

It was something he had found himself doing as well. Any debt, any guilt, that might have been a starting point for him, making him start watching where the human scholar walked, had evolved into an instinct to protect. 

And yet O'Neill still would not share his burden. 

So Teal'c just stood there, by O'Neill, watching the Stargate below in the dim light. 

"He shouldn't be going through that thing." 

Teal'c made no comment, although he did raise an eyebrow at those words. 

"And yet he goes through every single time and return each time a bit... different." Jack sighed, still not turning around, as he watched the crew do their routine radiation checks, unaware of the dark eyes studying them from above. 

"It was Daniel Jackson's choice." Teal'c had to say something. "He went through the Stargate willingly. For his wife..." The Jaafa paused. It was his fault that Daniel had to go through the Stargate. He was the one who had taken her away from Daniel. "If the blame needs to be laid with someone, it should be with m-" 

"Don't even start that again, Teal'c." Jack turned away from the window and paced around the conference table, his hands in his pockets. "Daniel never blamed you and neither do I." The man paused, looking back at the window where Teal'c still stood. "I'm just wondering... if his choosing to do this was really worth it." 

"Worth... it ?" 

Jack's eyes narrowed, his lips pressed into a thin line. 

"Worth his soul." 

"You grieve for something which is not lost," Teal'c commented boldly. The colonel darted a surprised look towards his friend. "Daniel Jackson is strong. He has a spirit that had fought the false gods many times before. I have... faith." 

A small smile appeared on Jack's lips. 

"You have eloquence, Teal'c." The Jaafa bowed his head slightly, acknowledging the compliment. The colonel ran a hand through his hair, stilling when it reached the back of his neck. Jack rubbed at the nape wearily. 

"Let's hope his... spirit will take him through this, Teal'c," Jack said softly. 

"You will help him through this, O'Neill. I have faith in this as well." 

"You're the only one," Jack muttered, missing the raised eyebrow from the Jaafa, about to turn away from the window when movement on the table caught his eye. 

The glasses and the pitcher, always filled with water, began to shake slightly, a sign no one would have noticed had Jack not filled a glass with water just minutes ago. Now that lone glass, away from the tray, began to shake slightly, the water inside jumping in reaction to minute vibrations coming from the activation of the Stargate. The colonel whipped his head back towards the Stargate in time to see the first chevron lock. 

"Unauthorized travelers !" the PA system boomed as the alarms began to wail. 

Without another word, Jack dashed out with Teal'c hot on his heels. Rushing past the soldiers who were running towards C block to the embarkation room, Jack headed straight for the technician up in the observation booth. 

"Who's coming through ?" General Hammond demanded, coming from behind Jack. The general mentally ran through a schedule. No one was due back yet. 

"I'm getting a special code, sir," the technician nervously reported, his eyes darting left and right, reading the codes in the computer screen. "It's the code assigned to the To'kra-" 

"Open the iris," Hammond ordered, exchanging a concerned look with Jack and Teal'c. "Where's the signal originating from ?" 

The technician yelped as the destination show up on the monitor. 

"P7J973 !" 

"What ?" Jack exclaimed, his eyes glued to the Stargate as the sixth chevron lit up. 

Before anyone could comment, the iris blossomed open, revealing the sparkling event horizon of the active Stargate. A few seconds later, a man dressed in To'kra costume, stumbled out of the Stargate, his right hand clutching his left shoulder. He fell to his knees, a device tumbling out of numb hands. 

"Close the iris ! Get a medical team down there !" General Hammond demanded as he followed Jack and Teal'c down to the embarkation room. 

Soldiers, with their rifles still trained on the man, made way for the three to approach. The To'kra looked up, revealing the wizened features of a man with long gray hair tied back. His eyes glowed briefly which made the men tense, but Hammond shook his head. The soldiers stepped back, their guns still on the newcomer. 

"You are... General Hammond ?" 

"Yes." Hammond paused as he heard the medical team arriving through the bulkhead doors. "And you are-?" 

"Tery'ka of Menkos... of the To'kra council." Tery'ka got up shakily, waving a hand at the medics. "I do not need assistance. I will heal quickly enough." 

Jack exchanged a surprised look with Hammond. 

"Isn't it a great risk to travel by yourself ? And why were you at P7J-" 

"There is no time," Tery'ka interrupted. "I am sorry, but I need to speak with you about what had happened on that planet. It is of the utmost urgency." 

That got everyone's attention. 

Before Hammond could herd everyone to the briefing room, Tery'ka continued. 

"I must speak with those who were there on that planet." Tery'ka pulled out a small cylinder like a container from within the folds of his tunic. "I must speak with those who were poisoned with the nimertha." 

* * *

Sam jumped when she heard the sirens and glanced at Daniel with concern. The noise didn't wake the young man, who was still deep in slumber. She chewed her lower lip, drawn by the alarms - worried that they meant bad news, yet reluctant to leave Daniel's side. 

Unbidden, her thoughts turned to Jack. She glanced behind her, half expecting the colonel to be standing there, ready to continue his vigil by Daniel's bedside, but to her surprise, he wasn't there. 

_Ironic,_ , Sam thought as she leaned into her seat, unconsciously mirroring Jack's attempts to get comfortable, _I try to get him to leave, to take a break and then I spend my time wondering why he's not here any more._ The Major sighed. 

_Why did this happen ? It was supposed to be a routine mission._

__"Colonel." Sam's ashen face appeared at the doorway of the locker room. She stood there, hands behind her back, shoulders straight._ _

__Jack waved his hand impatiently in her direction as he tied his bootlaces._ _

__"Carter, I'll be out in a minute, okay ? For crying out loud, us guys need the locker room too sometimes." He didn't look up, otherwise he would have noticed the way she was fidgeting by the door._ _

__"Sir."_ _

__The voice sounded so... stunned, so breathless, that Jack looked up then, at the stark white face of his Major. His hands stilled, the ends of his laces dangling from his fingers._ _

__"What is it?" Jack got up from the bench, his face serious as he realized that Sam was here for something more important than taking her turn in the locker room._ _

__"We... were expecting SG-5 and Daniel to be returning within the hour, so when we heard the alarms announcing incoming travelers, we assumed..."_ _

__Jack nodded, not wanting to interrupt._ _

__"When we didn't receive the code, General Hammond got worried and told us to override the iris and open it... in case... in case there were injuries and they couldn't get a code through the wormhole."_ _

__"Happens all the time." Jack knew that. "That's why we got the security detail waiting by the Stargate in case it isn't our people." His eyes widened as he realized something. "What ? There were injuries ?" The colonel was about to push past Carter, to head towards the infirmary. "Is Daniel- ?"_ _

__Sam looked as though she wanted to cry, but military training kept her face composed, although her lower lip trembled a bit._ _

__"SG-5 didn't return through the Stargate... Something was... tossed back through the 'Gate, sir."_ _

__She pulled her hands from behind her back and showed Jack what she was clutching. An olive green hat, spotted with rusty red stains. Jack realized with dismay that the stains were blood, noticing too how the floppy brim was crumpled, the hat torn at one side, the string that dangled from one edge was frayed...._ _

__"No..." Jack breathed, his words barely audible, but the Major heard the shock underlying them._ _

__It was Daniel's hat._ _

_Sam shook her head, as if clearing it of the memories, unwilling to remember the long wait before they were finally sent off to find them._

_It had taken all her resolve to not start demanding that the technicians punch in the coordinates for the planet, all her patience to sit through the briefing with General Hammond, and through the tedious procedure of sending another probe through to make sure it wasn't a trap._

_When the Stargate first burst into sparkling light, to let the MALP probe through, she was half tempted, military protocol be damned, to rush through along with the probe to find her friend. When she had glanced over to Jack and Teal'c, she realized that they were thinking the same way._

_Then the search finally began._

__Johnson put up a hand, halting his team. He eyed the sky with a frown, glancing over to her and her team._ _

__"Getting dark. Think we should make camp, Colonel ?" Johnson left it as a question, knowing full well that it was too dark to continue any further, but also knowing by the set jaw O'Neill was sporting that the man might disagree if Johnson made it a statement._ _

__She watched as Jack looked around with a scowl. She could understand how he felt. It was only hours since they had gone through the Stargate to P7J973 and already the sky was darkening for nightfall._ _

__"Damn it," Jack muttered low, but she and Teal'c heard it clearly. They looked at each other worriedly as the colonel started barking orders to make camp._ _

__Camp was set up quickly enough. Energy that had been set aside for the search was now focussed completely on the task of making a base. Sam got the meals going before anyone asked, just grateful to have something to do. Every so often though, she would look up and see the colonel standing by the edge of camp, looking out at the surrounding forest. His back was rigid, his shoulders stiff, and he barely acknowledged when Teal'c came up to him and softly informed him that dinner was ready._ _

__At first she feared that the colonel was going to refuse but he silently went over to the center fire, accepted the metal cup with barely a grunt and sat down by his tent._ _

__"How you folks doing ?" Johnson asked, sitting down on one side of the log next to her. His dark face was serious as he accepted his MRE._ _

__"Great," Sam answered automatically, wincing as she realized that it sounded like something the colonel would say. She looked up at Johnson, about to apologize but by the understanding look on the SG-3 leader's face, she knew there was no need._ _

__Just then, Jack plunked down his cup on the ground and went into his tent. He muttered something about taking the next watch, since Teal'c had volunteered to take first watch already. Then with a zip of the tent, the man shut everyone else out._ _

__"I half expected him to demand that we keep on going," Johnson muttered._ _

__Sam said nothing, but silently agreed._ _

__After a few awkward words, Johnson realized that she wasn't in any mood to talk either. He bid her good night, gave a small smile and rejoined his men._ _

__She could see Anderson and Tomes glancing over to Jack's tent occasionally. Sighing, she wondered if she should try and talk with the colonel, but his posture since the start of the mission basically screamed for everyone to back off and she was too tired, too worried to try at this point._ _

__The only one who could talk to him now, the only one he would listen to, was missing._ _

__Once we find Daniel, it'll be okay, Sam thought as she extinguished the fire and went to bed, hoping daylight would come soon so the search could continue._ _

_Sam shuddered as she recalled how the structure looked when Teal'c finally found it, miles away from the village Daniel was planning to study. It took them three days before they found tracks, fresh footsteps marring the otherwise pristine wilderness. Following them, they found the stone archway half submerged in the swamp that edged along one side of the forest._

__SG-3 split up, Anderson and Booker on one side, Johnson and Tomes on the other. At Jack's nod, Sam and Teal'c crept inside the arched doorway, barely visible behind the twisted net of tree branches and vines. Jack followed quickly after, checking behind him to make sure that SG-3 was following and no one else._ _

__The first three guards were easy._ _

__Too easy._ _

__With a brief exchange of fire, the guards fell to the ground, with not even a cry from them. Sam had watched the colonel walk over to them, checking them out by nudging them with the butt of his rifle. Then he whistled softly, signaling all clear, and gone down the hallway._ _

__After a few minutes, and a few more small battles, they found their missing comrades._ _

__Johnson reported quietly that all of SG-5 was accounted for. All that remained, the only person left to find, was the one making Jack pace the hallways with a look of smouldering rage and barely hidden concern - Daniel._ _

__And she found him._ _

__"This one," she said softly, peering through the small cell window, catching sight of a shadow cast from the lights that hung just outside the window opposite the door._ _

__She could barely make out a huddled form, pressed against the corner of the cell, silent, not reacting to the sounds of the door bolt sliding open. She tried the door, relieved that it hadn't rusted shut from the green slime that caked the locks. Jack was hovering so close to her, she thought the colonel was going to kick the door down had it been rusted closed._ _

__As soon as the door swung open, Jack marched right in, ready to take his friend away from here. Then he skidded to a halt._ _

__"Oh my God." The colonel's voice dropped to a hoarse whisper. He stared at the curled up form, the way he was shivering uncontrollably, at the blue eyes staring at him without recognition._ _

__Sam remembered swallowing. She could feel Teal'c standing behind her, keeping an eye out for any guards. She dropped to her knees and joined Jack in trying to gain hold of Daniel, who had revived a little. The young man jerked back from their hands, his own arms wrapped around himself protectively. Jack grabbed him by the shoulders and got an elbow rammed into his stomach._ _

__"Damn it... hold him still... he..."_ _

__"We have to hurry," Sam murmured, wishing they had the time to be gentle, but they didn't dare risk getting caught by whoever it was responsible for this. They couldn't risk leaving Daniel here again._ _

__"I know but we have to calm him down first before we could... ow !" Jack reeled back as a scraped fist connected with his chin. She grabbed the colonel anxiously by the arm. Freed, Daniel shuffled away from her. She felt her eyes water at the sight._ _

__Daniel feared them._ _

__The colonel rubbed his jaw, shaking his head at Teal'c when the warrior looked like he was going to step inside to assist them._ _

__"Damn it !"_ _

__"Are you alright ?"_ _

__"Got me good, but I'm all right. Hold him still, Captain. Let me try."_ _

__Sam slipped her hands around Daniel's shoulders and was shocked to feel bony joints beneath dirty fatigues. She wanted so much to just wrap her arms around him and weep, for the pain her friend must have gone through, for the time it had taken to find them, but now was not the time or the place._ _

__Easing him against the wall was difficult - Daniel was constantly trying to kick them, punch them, all the while making frightened sounds, which came hissing out of cracked, dry lips. Despite the alarming condition he was in, Sam was glad to see that Daniel must have been fighting his tormentors the same way._ _

__If only Daniel could see that they weren't his enemy._ _

__The scientist cried out, almost lurching forward into her arms as soon as his back met the wall. Jack cursed, pulling Sam's arms away from Daniel's shoulders without a word of apology. As her hands dropped from the man's back, Sam brushed against the torn shirt. She lifted her hand up to her face and was dismayed to see her palm slick with blood._ _

__"Damn, his back is pretty bad. Lean him against me, I'll see if I can carry him." Jack came closer, one hand pushing Daniel's head down until it rested in the hollow of his shoulder._ _

__Teal'c couldn't keep silent._ _

__"I can carry-"_ _

__"No, we need you to help give us cover, or we'll never get out of here. I'll... I'll do it." The colonel bowed his head, almost to the point where his chin was resting on top of the blood-matted fair hair. Then he looked up and Sam saw the determination in his eyes as he slipped his arms under Daniel's knees and around his shoulders. With a slight lift, Jack cradled Daniel in his arms. As he stood, the older man paused, grunting._ _

__"Sir ?"_ _

__"Nothing... I just realized..." Jack looked down at Daniel, his jaw set and she could have sworn she saw a muscle in his jaw twitch. "He lost weight. He's a lot lighter than I thought. Those bastar-"_ _

__"Sir."_ _

__Jack sighed, turning around slightly, back towards the door - there he found worried faces peering into the cell. SG-3. He tensed, turning Daniel slightly away, as if to protect him from prying eyes. Daniel whimpered, moving restlessly in Jack's grasp._ _

__The colonel, despite all his self-control, couldn't stop the tremor in his voice as he dropped his head near Daniel's face, whispering softly to the young man._ _

__"Shh... It's okay. It's over. We're taking you home."_ _

__Sam looked at the face, remembering the wild eyes focussed on her when they first came in and knew._ _

__It wasn't over. It was only just beginning._ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Original Author Note: I would like to thank Rowan and Cathy for their help with these parts. And a big kiss towards my beta Graculus. Thanks you guys!


	4. Chapter 4

"S-sam ?" 

The woman started in her seat, looking at her friend on the bed. 

"Daniel. Did the noise wake you ? I could get Jan-" 

"Where's J-" Daniel started to say, but stopped. He looked away, suddenly seeming to be fascinated by the monitors besides him. 

"Where's what, Daniel ?" Sam asked softly as she helped him sit up, tucking the blanket back around him. She had misgivings about that move though, when she caught the wince as Daniel leaned into the pillows. 

Daniel shook his head. He looked embarrassed for some reason. 

"Nothing. I-" He looked up and squinted as he tried to focus on Sam. "You should get some rest, Sam. I'm okay." 

_Sure you are_ , Sam thought sadly, _that's why your eyes are glued to the door, looking for the colonel. That's why you don't want me to turn down the lights even though they're hurting your eyes._

"Do you need your glasses, Daniel ?" the woman asked as she opened the case by the bedside table and pulled them out. When they had found Daniel in the cell, his twisted frames were by his feet, beyond repair. Jack had a new pair made, and placed them by Daniel's bed. Sam had caught the colonel fingering the case once or twice as he sat there waiting for Daniel to wake up. 

"Maybe...later..." Daniel murmured, his eyes on his lap now. 

"I have..." Sam hated herself for doing this. She tried to make the statement sound casual. "I have the mission debriefings from Major Sanders, Smith and Tesh." She pointed the pile of folders on the table. "I thought maybe you would want to take a look at them... refresh... to see if you could remember anything." 

Daniel looked up, his blue eyes almost colorless. He looked like he had been betrayed. She tried not to flinch. 

"I think I remember enough already, Sam." The young man swallowed as he lifted his hands, revealing the bandages. "I saw what they... did to my back..." 

Sam winced, remembering catching a glimpse of the exposed stitches when she had helped Jack ease Daniel back onto the bed. And she still found her eyes wandering back to the darkening scabs on the sides of his temples, almost hidden by the hairline. But she could still see them, as they were before - bleeding, marring his face with blood that made his face almost unrecognizable. 

"You..." Sam felt like just easing him back down to bed and just letting him sleep, but she clenched her fists and pushed on. "You need to remember, Daniel. Janet's right. You need to know what happened to you. Yours and Stone's are the last missing links. Once Stone wakes up..." _If ever._ "...and you give your side of what you remember, we may be able to find out who did this and what hap-" 

"I already know what happened, Sam," the scientist said in a harsh voice, his breathing quickened with each word. "I lost." 

Sam stared at her friend, her mouth slightly open. 

"Lost ? What do you mean ? Daniel, I don't understand what-" 

"I just..." Daniel's voice broke a little, failing to remain steady. "I know I failed somehow... I just don't know what." His hands bunched to fists as he dropped his head. "Sometimes... I can..." Daniel stopped. She could almost see him physically pulling away although he stayed where he was on the bed. 

"Daniel-" 

The scientist shook his head. 

"Please... just leave it alone, Sam." He breathed deeply, closing his eyes, leaning back into the bed. "I... I'll be okay." 

"We're all here, Daniel," Sam said softly, reaching out to place a hand on her friend's arm. "You know that we'll be here, every step of the way." 

"Thank you," Daniel whispered, his eyes still closed. "I just need to be... alone right now." 

She made no move to leave. 

"Are you sure ?" 

"N-no." The young man opened his eyes and smiled sadly. "But clinging on to you guys like some pathetic child won't-" 

Sam leaned forward and carefully wrapped her arms around his shoulders. Daniel stiffened at first but then slowly moved his hands onto her back. She could feel his hands hesitantly patting her. 

"You're not pathetic, Daniel." Sam's voice was muffled against his neck. "Don't ever say that about yourself. I'm here because I want to help. We're all here because we want to help." 

The man just sat there, Sam's arms around him, unable to find the words as he listened to her whisper reassurances to him. Daniel then leaned into the embrace and shuddered as he felt her arms tighten around him. 

Daniel's voice choked. 

"I should have tried harder... I don't know why... but I should have said no..." 

"It's okay." 

"No it isn't." Daniel pushed her away. "I should have fought harder. I..." He swallowed. His eyes seemed to glaze over, turning the once brilliant blue into a dull haze. "I remember **begging** , Sam." He flushed slightly, looking ashamed. "I was begging. I couldn't stop myself. I don't remember anything else but that !" 

"Daniel-" 

"We didn't do anything !" Daniel's voice rose higher as his fists bunched around the blankets underneath him. "We didn't do anything to get them angry ! I... it was only an exploratory mission ! We were just there to study ! Why did they..." 

"Daniel." Sam tried to lean closer to him but stopped when she saw Daniel's head snap up, his body cringing away. "We think they were Go'uald." 

Startled, Daniel's blue eyes widened as she continued. 

"When we... found this place..." Sam tried to reach out and take Daniel's hand, but he just tensed. She sighed to herself. "There were guards there, in Jaafa uniform. We... tried to capture one but..." 

_Teal'c shouted in alarm as a staff weapon blast came close to the corner where they were hiding._

_"O'Neill !" the Jaafa reported. "I see three to your left !"_

_The colonel nodded curtly, pulling out his small mirror and extending it's long metal pole so he could see around the corner. He caught a glimpse of the three Jaafa before another blast shot the mirror out of his hands. Cursing, he shrank back into cover._

_"Shit ! Johnson, can you get a good shot on your side ?" Jack barked into the walkie-talkie. He exchanged a look with Sam, pinned on the opposite side of the hallway._

_The radio crackled to life as the SG-3 leader responded._

_"Negative. They got us trapped in here pretty good."_

_"Sir !" Sam pulled out a grenade. "I think I can bounce it off that wall, into their hideout."_

_The colonel stared at the major._

_"You sure ? That's the last one !"_

_"I've done it before," Sam answered grimly, remembering using a similar tactic when she had been tracking down the alien assassins called ReTu. She had ricocheted a grenade off a table into the elevator that time. She nodded again._

_"Just give me cover, sir," Sam shouted._

_Jack nodded curtly. With a shout to Teal'c, he rolled away from his safe corner, into the middle of the hallway and began firing wildly. The guards, unprepared for the sudden burst of fire, shrank back._

_"Now, major !"_

_Sam eyed the area a few feet away from the corner where the Jaafa was hiding. With a quick flick of the wrist and a silent prayer, she tossed the grenade. A light bounce, it struck the wall and flew into the corner._

_"Heads up !" Jack shouted before ducking his head._

_With a burst of sound and light, the corner in front of them exploded and she could faintly hear foreign cries, indicating that she had struck her mark. She frowned as she saw one guard tumble out of the hiding place, groaning as he hit the floor._

_"We got a live one here !" Johnson emerged from down the hallway, his men surrounding the survivor, their rifles aimed at the Jaafa._

_Jack hurried down the hallway, his face set with fury, ready to grab the guard when suddenly, Johnson shouted a warning. Teal'c, from behind him, abruptly grabbed Jack by the vest, jerking him back. The other soldiers backed away as the Jaafa pulled out a round device, screamed unintelligibly, then activated it._

_The explosion rocked the hallway and threw everyone to the ground._

_When Sam lifted her head again, the Jaafa was dead._

"He killed himself, Daniel," Sam finished. The young man nodded numbly. "I mean... I've never seen such... suicidal devotion in a Jaafa before... well... except maybe Teal'c when he was..." She sighed, wondering when she had started babbling. "But we didn't recognize the symbols on their foreheads. It looked like a V shaped symbol, but it was curved at the ends like-" 

"Antlers ?" Daniel whispered. 

Sam looked surprised. 

"Actually... now that you mention it. They could have looked like antlers. Daniel ? Did you remember something ?" The young man seemed to have paled further. 

"No." Daniel looked away, shivering a bit. 

"Daniel-" 

"I don't... remember..." he said tightly. 

Daniel bowed his head. 

"I'm sorry, Sam." 

She wanted to reassure him that it was okay, but before she could say anything, there was a knock at the door. Daniel stiffened, shrinking back within the covers of his blankets and Sam realized sadly, that this signaled that the conversation was over. 

A soldier stepped into the room, looking at her tentatively. 

"Major Carter ?" 

"Yes." Sam felt like yelling at the soldier for interrupting, but the soldier looked so anxious that she began to wonder if his arrival had anything to do with the alarms she had heard before. 

"I was asked to inform you that you're needed in the briefing room." 

"Did they say what for ?" Sam darted a look at Daniel, who had turned his back towards her. Her shoulders slumped slightly in defeat. 

"No, Major." 

"Daniel, I'll be right back," Sam said softly, her hand touching his shoulder briefly. 

The scientist didn't look up when she left. 

* * *

Janet Fraiser checked on her last patient, the only one who still hadn't woken up since their return from that planet. She nodded as staff members walked by, but didn't bother with conversation as she concentrated on her patient. Taking the chart from the foot of the bed, the doctor quickly scanned the last blood work result. 

"Lieutenant Stone," Janet murmured. "And how are we doing today ?" 

The medical monitors beeped and chirped, answering her question. Janet smiled to herself, reading the vitals, which were good. Stone could be waking up soon. She eyed the clipboard and nodded to herself when the blood work showed that the strange proteins they had discovered were virtually non-existent. It was the same for Sanders, Tesh- 

And Daniel. 

Thinking back to the young scientist, Janet's smile faded. She had yet to return to check on Daniel and wondered briefly what she would find. Would she find Colonel O'Neill there again ? And if so, what would he be doing ? 

Rubbing her fingers against the left side of her temples, Janet could feel a headache coming her way. Moving her fingers in circles, she massaged the skin until it went away. 

_Now if everything else were as easy as that, I would be truly a miracle worker._

The alarms went off and Janet jumped. As a doctor, she was used to the sudden outburst of noise, but with her mind wandering, she had been caught off guard, and her heart was pounding. All around her were the standby medical team, gathering at the door and heading for the embarkation room as per standard procedure. Janet just stood there, waiting for her heart to slow to a decent rate. She silently cursed the high pitch wailing, knowing a certain someone nearby was probably getting upset as a result of the same sounds right now. 

_Can you blame him ?_

Janet shook her head. No, she couldn't, but the doctor in her couldn't help feeling like she wasn't doing everything she could to help Daniel. A certain colonel, who would remain nameless right now, was hindering her. 

Daniel didn't want to remember. 

_How do you heal someone who doesn't want to be healed ?_

The doctor sighed, sitting down besides Stone's bed, allowing herself a momentary indulgence. 

But as soon as she sat down, her mind wandered back to the pale face three rooms down. Groaning, Janet set her clipboard down and leaned into the chair. Vaguely, she noticed that the chairs, although a vast improvement over the plastic chairs they had inherited when this operation first set up, they were still not anatomically correct. 

She wondered how anyone could sit in these things for hours, their spines curving to the most agonizing positions, as they waited on their ailing comrades. The people holding vigils would end up needing the infirmary as much as the people they were watching over. 

If there was ever a chance, Janet would have to ask Jack this question. _If he lets me get near him. Or near Daniel._

Janet felt like a monster, pushing Daniel to remember. And the way Jack glared at her each time she asked another question only made her feel even worse. The doctor knew it would be painful, even to the point of torturous. She wasn't a machine, she knew what could happen if she kept on pressing the issue, dredging up the memories. Janet also knew that Daniel would want nothing more than to let his mind forget, let some things go unrecalled. 

But Janet seen too many soldiers shove away memories. 

She had also seen the memories return with a vengeance and their victims desperate for a way out. 

Some sought that escape with drugs. Some with guns. And some just shrank away, hiding within the shattered remains of their minds. 

Janet shivered. 

She had no syringe filled with miracles to heal people who suffered like that. 

And so she pushed. 

But Jack kept pushing her back, pushing her away, and Daniel let him. 

A surge of anger came abruptly and Janet found herself a little surprised. She could understand the motives behind Jack's actions, the desire to protect the younger man. How many times had she herself wanted to just wrap her arms around Daniel, to whisper reassurances like she did with Cassandra and rock him until he fell asleep ? But she held back, because she knew that Daniel needed that from SG-1. 

But Daniel also needed more. 

Janet wondered whatever had happened to the stubborn pushing and shoving that Jack often favored with Daniel. The colonel was always tough with the anthropologist but she had come to understand that it was for his own good. It was Jack's way of ensuring Daniel's safety. Even at times when she had thought the colonel was being too harsh, she had always seen the underlying concern in his eyes as he studied Daniel when he thought no one was looking. In Jack's own gruff way, the colonel worried about his friend. 

_In fact, they all do_ , Janet mused as she double-checked Stone's readings. 

Sam was Daniel's academic supporter, his sisterly companion during those late nights down at the labs. She was probably the only one who could catch up with Daniel's tumbling, eye-popping speed of thought. Janet had witnessed their whirlwind discussions once and was still dizzy thinking about it. The two had switched subjects, mixed and matched theories faster than she could take a pulse. 

Teal'c was Daniel's guard. Janet had caught the Jaafa standing guard over the scientist many times, even when he wasn't in the infirmary on one of his notorious visits. The doctor once found Teal'c hovering over Daniel, when the anthropologist had fallen asleep on his desk during a long night. The Jaafa didn't wish to disturb Daniel and didn't want anyone else to bother him either. So he had stood there, as stiff as a pillar, silently watching over Daniel while he slumbered. 

The doctor smiled. She remembered Jack catching them, then teasing Teal'c about it for the longest time. 

Jack. 

Janet's smile faded. She had expected Jack to go into the same push and shove routine as always, but instead he was handling Daniel like he was a bomb that was about to go off and Jack was unsure which wire to cut. She had overheard him asking Daniel what had happened, then skirting the issue when Daniel got too upset. 

Janet pressed her fingers against her temples again, her headache back. She would love more than anything for Stone to wake up and tell all, so freeing Daniel from the pressure of remembering and let time do it for him. But life was never that simple. Never wrapped up in pretty wrapping paper and a fancy bow. 

_So who should I push ? The colonel ? Or Daniel ?_

The doctor didn't like either choice. 

"Doctor Fraiser ?" A soldier stood by the doorway at attention. Janet turned towards him. 

"You're needed in the briefing room." 

* * *

Jack was wondering if he had heard correctly. He blinked once, looking back at General Hammond, who had the same expression on his face. Janet also had the same stunned look on her face. 

"Let me see if I have this right," Jack said slowly. "You want us to take SG-5 and Doctor Jackson **back** to P7J973 to-" 

"To seek out the second base." Tery'ka nodded. "That is correct." 

"Out of the question," Hammond said in a firm voice from where he was seated at his end of the table. "Our men are still recovering from that mission. I can't send them back there when there's still a threat." 

"The risk is calculable," Tery'ka said calmly, setting the cylinder he carried on the table. 

"Calculable ?" Jack didn't care if this man was To'kra or not, he was fuming that this person would have the nerve to come in here, demanding that they take SG-5 and Daniel back to that place. Jack stood up from his seat, his eyes blazing. "What do you mean **calculable** ?" 

"Colonel O'Neill." General Hammond said the man's name quietly but the warning in it was enough. Jack sat down again, glowering at Tery'ka. 

"We must seek this Goa'uld out." The To'kra didn't even blink at Jack's anger. He studied the people seated round the table solemnly. "The leader is seeking to overthrow the system lords one by one. There was no success before, but with this," Tery'ka pointed to the cylinder once more, "nimertha, the Goa'uld would be able to do what it wishes." 

Sam came into the meeting room, her face flushed. 

"General Hammond ? I was told to come here." She looked surprised. The meeting had started without her. That in itself was a sure sign that whatever it was, it was too urgent to wait for all the participants to arrive. She nodded towards Teal'c and Janet, who were seated across from Jack and their visitor. 

The general nodded. 

"Major. This is Tery'ka from the To'kra council. Tery'ka, this is-" 

"Samantha Carter of SGC." The To'kra coolly surveyed her, looking her up and down. "Yes. The host Jacob Carter has mentioned her many times." 

Sam had barely sat down before she started asking questions. 

"What's going on ? Is this about my dad ? Is he okay ?" 

"We were on an intelligence mission on the planet you called P7J973." Tery'ka ignored her questions as he pulled out a sphere. Pressing the bottom of it, a hologram shot out, showing the lush green landscape of the planet. 

Jack clenched his jaw, remembering the deceptively serene slopes of the planet. 

"There were rumors, among the Goa'ald of a return to power of one exiled long ago." Tery'ka paused. "That this Goa'uld had recovered the gifts of Ra-" 

"Ra ?" General Hammond interrupted. The To'kra nodded. 

"Yes. The nimertha." Tery'ka touched a panel on the cylinder and the image changed to one more detailed, this time showing the abandoned village. "It might have been guarded by these people, for their leader, until he could return for them." 

"What's does this nimertha do?" Janet wanted to know. 

"It serves as... a bind." Tery'ka hedged, unsure of the word for it in their language. "Changes one's will to one of their wishing." 

"Telling them something that may be untrue," the doctor added. 

"Yes." 

"Or telling them to kill someone," Jack muttered. Tery'ka fixed his eyes on the colonel. 

"Yes." 

Sam frowned. 

"Isn't that nishta ?" The Major was referring to a chemical the team had been exposed to when they went to find Seth. She remembered falling under the control of the sweet scent of the nishta, unable to stop herself as she told the Goa'uld about knowing the To'kra. 

The To'kra looked surprised when she mentioned the term. 

"Almost. You have encountered nishta ?" 

"SG-1 was helping Jacob Carter track down Seth. They encountered it during that mission." 

"I had heard about your success in that." Tery'ya turned his eyes back to Sam, a small smile on his lips. It had an almost satisfied gleam to it. 

"I have also heard that you were responsible for ridding us of him." Tery'ka's eyes glowed slightly, telling of his pleasure, revealing the first real emotion since he arrived here. "You have our gratitude." 

"You're...welcome." Sam didn't look too happy about his 'gratitude'. 

"The nishta ?" Jack interrupted with a frown. 

"It is similar to the nishta, but there is no immunity to this after being exposed. One can be under the bondage of the nimertha over and over again." Fingering the cylinder, the To'kra passed it down the table. "Its effects come to pass after a huge trauma to the host body." 

"Like death," Janet volunteered quietly as she accepted the container. She cautiously gave it a sniff. It smelled a little like apples. The doctor passed it along to Sam, who did the same. From the look on the Major's face, she thought the same thing. 

Tery'ka nodded when he heard Janet's example. 

"It contains a mixture of naquada which releases at death, to revive the body." 

"I've done tests on their blood," Janet continued. "I see evidence of the chemical leaving their bloodstream." 

"If the task to be achieved, or the hold on the host is lost, it will cease." 

"So in not killing Colonel O'Neill, that task is gone," General Hammond mused. 

Jack fidgeted in his seat, as the conversation was getting more and more uncomfortable by the second. 

"I don't see a problem then. If they get this stuff in their system, all you have to do is hold them until whatever it was they had to do, fails." 

"Would you know what it is they have to do though, Colonel O'Neill ?" Tery'ka countered. 

Jack scowled, knowing the answer to that. He fingered the fading bruises on his throat. 

"There is an antidote. Which was why we had ventured to the planet, in hopes of finding it, but-" 

"Wait, you said we ?" Sam interrupted. 

"Selmac and I." 

Everyone visibly sat up straighter. 

"You were with General Carter ?" Hammond asked. "Where is he now ?" 

"I fear for him, we were forced to separate." Tery'ka took back the sphere, and the image of the planet vanished. "We were ambushed after our exploration of the cells where your men were held." 

"My dad ?" Sam asked anxiously. 

"I believe still back in the planet." 

Jack had to stop himself from exploding. 

"Why didn't you say so in the first place ?" 

"I need your people to return to the planet to find the second structure. They may have him there." 

The room fell silent as they digested this. General Hammond was the first to speak up. 

"I understand the urgency of this. We will of course provide any aid in rescuing General Carter, but I can't send the men back to that planet in their state." 

"They could be the only ones who know where the second complex will be." 

"We found the first one on our own," Sam argued. "I'm sure with enough men, we could find the second." 

Tery'ka eyed the humans seated around the table. 

"I do not have time to waste. Selmac may have already ingested the nimertha. Our locations and names of our operatives may already be revealed to the leader." 

"Who is the leader ?" Jack abruptly asked, his eyes narrowing. 

"I do not know." 

"You know where they were hidden. What they have. And that there's an antidote, but you don't know who the leader is..." Jack eyed Tery'ka. 

"No." 

Jack snorted softly, but quieted when he got another look from General Hammond. He looked over to Carter and saw that her eyes were anxiously looking back at him. Jack's gaze softened, realizing she was probably worried about her father. 

"I need to speak with the men who ingested the nimertha. Perhaps they could tell me of the location or show me," Tery'ka repeated. "It would save me the time to find Selmac." 

Janet spoke up then. 

"I'm afraid I can't allow that." She nodded towards General Hammond. "Doctor Jackson is still recuperating from his injuries." 

"If I can talk to him, perhaps he can decide for himself ?" Tery'ka pressed. 

Jack leaned forward a little in his seat. 

"She said he was still recovering," he said tightly. 

"But he may remember-" 

"He doesn't remember anything at all." Jack was practically seething by now. "Nothing." 

"If I could talk to him," the To'kra persisted. 

"Wouldn't do you any good." 

"The location is very important. Selmac must be rescued before the knowledge of our operatives is revealed." 

"He... doesn't... remember," Jack grated out. 

"Gentlemen," General Hammond interrupted. 

Jack and Tery'ka both looked at General Hammond. He eyed the colonel, his hands twitching on top of the table and then looked towards the doctor. 

"I'll leave that decision entirely up to the doctor, Tery'ka." 

Suddenly, all eyes were on Dr. Fraiser. 

The doctor, fully aware of the piercing gaze headed in her direction from Jack, coughed quietly. 

"I'm afraid I have to refuse that visit for now, General Hammond. Maybe later, if the answers gained from the others aren't enough." Janet turned slightly and saw Jack frowning. "I... I would rather not interrupt Doctor Jackson's recuperation, though." 

General Hammond nodded. 

"Very well, doctor. Tery'ka, I'm afraid I can not allow any questioning of Doctor Jackson for the time being." 

The To'kra nodded, but he did not look pleased with the answer. 

"In the meantime, if the doctor agrees, you may speak with the others. Colonel O'Neill, you start preparing your team for this mission. I'll be adding SG-3 to your detail." 

"Yes sir," Jack said automatically. His posture revealed nothing of what he might be thinking right now. 

Hammond abruptly shuffled his folders, tapping them on the table to straighten them, thus signaling that the meeting was over. 

"Okay," Hammond said. "We'll send another probe through straight away. Make sure everything's good to go. We'll send your team through as soon as Tery'ka's finished talking with our men." 

* * *

The To'kra nodded towards the general as everyone else got up to leave. Tery'ka glanced over at the colonel briefly before following Janet and the general out of the room, but Jack remained where he was. He was already scribbling on his notepad, listing what he would need for the mission. He had thrown himself into the task and didn't realize that Teal'c and Carter were still standing there. 

"O'Neill." 

Jack looked up and was startled to realize that the two of them were standing by the end of the table. 

Teal'c turned questioningly to Carter, who nodded. 

"What is it ?" Jack asked seriously, tapping his pencil on the table. 

"What of Daniel Jackson ?" the Jaafa asked quietly. 

The pencil stilled. 

"What of him ?" 

Carter spoke up softly. "I think... I think we should tell him what's going on, sir." 

Jack placed down the pencil carefully, as if it was very important. He leaned forward, lacing his fingers together in front of him. 

"I'm not taking him through the Stargate, Major." 

"I'm not saying we should make him come with us. He's in no condition for that, of course. He's only just starting to recover from his wounds. I just..." The woman paused. "He needs to know that we need him to remember." 

"Do we ?" 

Sam started. She looked over at Teal'c with mild concern before turning back to the colonel. 

"Uh... yes, sir. I think we do." 

Jack swiveled on his chair, turning towards his teammates. 

"Daniel can't remember." 

"He doesn't **want** to remember." Carter repeated what Janet had told her. "There's a big difference." 

The colonel was silent, waiting coolly for her to continue. 

"Daniel hasn't come to grips with what happened to him yet, sir," she went on. "But if we're there to help him-" 

"How is forcing Daniel to remember going to **help** him ?" Jack asked coldly. 

Sam winced at his tone. 

"We have to be ready to ship out in a few hours, Major." The colonel turned his chair away. 

"Sir-" 

"Carter !" Jack snapped. He calmed down slightly before he spoke again, his eyes losing their harsh blackness. "Look, this isn't something we should be discussing right now. After the mission, we'll all sit down and really have a go at the situation, okay ?" He looked back down at his notepad, realizing that he hadn't written anything down usable at all and wondered why that was. "This isn't something we can just march over and demand out of him, Carter." Jack glanced up at her, his mouth pressed to a thin line. "He needs time." 

The other two looked doubtfully at the colonel. Jack sighed. 

"We can't waste time here either," Jack murmured. "And I know you want to get out there and help your father." He winced inwardly when he saw Carter stiffen. It was a low blow and he knew it. 

"Yes sir," Sam said stiffly. She turned on her heel and started to leave. 

"Major ?" 

Sam turned back slightly when Jack spoke. 

"We **will** talk about this when we get back. Okay ?" Jack paused. "Okay, Carter ?" 

She smiled softly then, her shoulders relaxing, the stiff posture gone. 

"Yes, sir." 

Jack nodded, turning back to his papers and tried to concentrate on the task at hand. He looked up again when he felt that there was still someone watching him. Jack shook his head ruefully when he saw Teal'c had not left yet. 

"Still here ?" 

"I do not understand," Teal'c confessed. Jack looked surprised. 

"Huh ?" 

"About your fears." 

Jack frowned. "I don't know what you're talking about." 

"You are hesitant to help Daniel Jackson." Teal'c tilted his head slightly, as if to consider Jack more carefully. "You are... not yourself." 

"Not myself ?" Jack commented wryly, lifting an eyebrow at those words. "What do you mean ?" 

"You have always confronted Daniel Jackson on many issues," Teal'c went on, still standing by the end of the table as if at attention. "You are often very forceful in your... interactions with him." 

"Forceful ?" Jack smiled slightly. "Is that what I am ?" 

"It is for his welfare." 

Smile fading, Jack leaned back into his chair, rocking it slightly. 

"So I'm forceful, huh ?" 

"As you see necessary, O'Neill," the Jaafa reminded him. "But... I do not see this right now." 

The chair stilled. 

"And you think that's a bad thing ?" 

"Daniel Jackson needs your help, O'Neill," Teal'c said abruptly. "Major Carter and I can not aid him as we wish to, but Daniel Jackson very often relies on your strength. You can help him." 

"My strength," Jack murmured. 

"Yes." 

The colonel sat there, fingering his pencil. Teal'c just stood there, looking comfortable with the silence between them. He seemed content to wait quietly, biding his time patiently for a response from the man seated in front of him. 

"Do you believe in ghosts ?" Jack asked abruptly, remembering Daniel asking him the same thing a short while ago. 

Teal'c paused, raising an eyebrow at the question. 

"Ghosts ? Do you mean spirits, O'Neill ?" 

Jack nodded. 

"I believe something remains when all things cease to exist," Teal'c said carefully. "A part of the ka." 

"Ka ?" 

"The spirit," Teal'c translated. "Daniel Jackson once told me that your... old Egypt once believed in such a thing." 

"So you believe there are spirits ?" Jack asked with a slight grimace. 

"I believe there are things which we can see but can not explain." 

"Memories strong enough to be spirits, perhaps ?" Jack asked. 

"Perhaps." Teal'c looked thoughtful as he continued. "I sometimes see the people I made suffer while under Apophis' command. They may be memories. They may be-" 

"Ghosts." 

"Perhaps." 

Jack chewed his lower lip. 

"Daniel once asked if I believed in ghosts. I said I didn't." 

Teal'c nodded. 

"I lied." 

The Jaafa looked silently at Jack. The colonel sighed, crossing his arms, suddenly looking very old, very tired, his eyes staring at a space behind Teal'c. 

"Maybe they're memories. Maybe they're ghosts. But they are real, Teal'c. Sometimes I can't see them, but I can hear them, smell them. But not all the time." 

Jack turned his seat, so that it was facing the glass once more. But he didn't get up, to look out through the window at the Stargate below. 

"They would pop up suddenly or at least they did, in the past." 

Jack's eyes darkened. 

"You see them now," Teal'c stated, rather than asked. 

"Daniel doesn't remember." Jack ignored what Teal'c had said. "There're no ghosts for him." He tilted his head up towards Teal'c. "I hope he doesn't have to experience that." 

"You do not believe you can help Daniel Jackson," Teal'c said suddenly. 

Jack looked startled. He smiled sadly. 

"For an alien who claims he knows nothing of our strange ways, you're pretty insightful." Jack sighed heavily, the chair underneath him creaking softly. "Teal'c, if his ghosts come back to haunt him, I may not be able to help him." 

"You have always helped Daniel Jackson in the past," the Jaafa reminded his friend. 

"Doesn't mean I can help him with this in the future." 

"Have you no faith, O'Neill ?" 

Jack narrowed his eyes. 

"This isn't about faith, Teal'c." 

"I believe it is." 

"It's about me being able to help him." The colonel's mouth pressed into a thin line. "Not about some faith in religion or some higher being." 

"That is not what I mean." Teal'c stepped in closer, turning towards the Stargate as he continued. "When you first showed up in Chulak and declared that you could help my people..." Teal'c paused. "It was about faith then." He turned to look at Jack, his eyes very solemn. "But not faith in a god." Teal'c bowed his head towards Jack, a slight smile towards the colonel as he remembered that day long ago. "It was faith in a Tau'ri who dared to defy a god many had not dared to question for hundreds of years." 

Stunned, Jack could only watch his friend leave. Teal'c paused at the door. 

"That is my faith, O'Neill." And with those words, Teal'c left. 

The colonel chewed his lower lip, turning Teal'c's words over and over in his head. Deep in thought, he didn't hear Janet come in until the door closed behind her. 

"Colonel O'Neill ?" 

"For crying out loud," Jack said wearily. "What is this ? Open house ?" He turned towards the entrance, stiffening when he saw it was Doctor Fraiser. "What do you want ?" 

"I should be asking you that question, Colonel." Janet walked over and sat down on her usual seat at the table, to the right of General Hammond's. She folded her hands in front of her, acting as if it the meeting was taking place all over again. 

"I would have thought you would want to be with Daniel for a while before leaving for this mission." 

"Have to prepare for what we'll need," Jack said curtly, picking up his pencil to prove his point. 

"So he doesn't know." Janet didn't ask. She knew. 

Jack scribbled away on the notepad. 

"Are you going to tell him ?" 

"He's not going." The colonel didn't bother looking up. 

"That wasn't my question, Colonel." 

Jack's fingers tensed and suddenly, the pencil snapped. Janet sucked in her breath, trying not to let that action deter her. 

"I think Daniel needs to know what's going on. And I think he needs to hear it from you." 

"I'll talk to him after the mission," Jack muttered. 

Janet looked at him coolly. "I think you should talk to him now." 

Looking up, his eyes were dark. 

" **You** think ?" 

The doctor nodded. 

The colonel slowly, deliberately got up, bracing the heel of his hands on the table, leaning forward a bit, his eyes narrowing on her face. Janet stared back steadily. 

"You think ?" Jack repeated. "You think, she thinks, he thinks..." The colonel snorted softly. "Did anyone stop to consider if *Daniel* would think the same ?" 

"I know Daniel is reluctant to try and-" 

"Reluctant ?" The colonel gave a bitter laugh. "You make it sound like he's doing this to himself-" 

"In cases of heavy trauma-" 

"He is not a case ! Damn it, this is not some case in a medical textbook where the cure can be found on page nine !" Jack's voice rose as his arms trembled under the strain of supporting most of his weight off the table. "He has a name !" 

"I know." The doctor's voice was whisper quiet. "But I also know that sooner or later his memory is going to return, with or without our help. What I want to know is... what are you going to do when that happens ?" 

Jack stared at the doctor. 

"Me ?" 

"Are you going to push or are you going to dance ?" 

The colonel stared at Janet like she had gone mad and started jumping about on top of the table. 

"What ?" 

"Are you going to help Daniel remember everything and come out of this intact, or are you going to avoid the issue like you are doing right now ?" 

"I am not avoiding the issue," Jack replied stiffly. "He needs time-" 

"Or maybe..." Janet was hesitant to volunteer the suggestion. "Maybe what he really needs is to go back." The colonel's hands bunched into fists briefly as he took a deep breath. "I'm not saying now. Maybe later, when it's safe to go back. It could jog his memory," the doctor continued. "It could be overwhelming at first, but with your help, he could get ov-" 

"Out of the question !" Jack paced around a small area near the conference table, his hands alternately stuck in his pockets and crossed in front of his chest. He glared across the table to Janet, still sitting there stiffly with her own hands folded neatly on the table in front of her. 

"You can't expect me to take Daniel back to that place." Shaking his head against the idea, the colonel stopped at his end of the table, slamming his palms down the surface of the table. "What makes you think going back there would do him any good ? Have you seen him ?" Jack's voice rose a little. "Have you see him every night like we do ? For God's sake, there isn't a night when he doesn't wake up screaming !" 

"I know th-" 

"No !" Jack pointed at her angrily. "No, you don't ! You don't know what he's going through. This... memory loss may be the best thing that has happened to him so far !" 

"I know I can't possibly imagine how he must be feeling, how it must feel to wake up and find yourself in such a cond-" Janet swallowed. "But I do know that avoiding the issue, not confronting what has happened to him can only make it worse. You of all people should understand that-" 

Jack's eyes narrowed again and Janet blanched as she realized that she had ventured somewhere she shouldn't have. 

"What the **hell** is that supposed to mean ?" Jack's voice was low, but it held a deadly edge that made Janet wish she could take her words back. Too late to retract, to retreat, she pushed on. 

"I know about Cromwell." Janet stood up, looking Jack squarely in the eye. She flinched inwardly as she saw the smouldering rage inside the eyes. "I know about those four months-" 

"You had no right-" 

"It was part of your medical files. I had to look through them after you got caught in that explosion trying to plug that black hole. I saw the reference and made the connection-" 

"That wasn't **your** connection to make !" Jack thumped his fist down on the table so hard, the glasses in the center jumped. The rattling of fragile glass sounded like screams as they landed back precariously on the table. 

"Maybe if you talk to him about your experiences, make him understand-" 

"Understand ?" The man glared at her. "Understand what ? You're the smart one round here, Doc. Maybe you can explain it to me because none of that garbage ever made sense to me back then !" 

"I know it must have been difficult to put it behind you-" 

"You have a way with words here !" Jack interrupted her with a snort. "Understand ? Difficult ? Do you want to know what's difficult ? It's people so goddamn sure that they know what's best for us, using that condescending tone when they speak, the pity that just oozes out of them like slime!" 

His voice rose higher, the table practically shaking under his palms. 

"What the hell do you know about difficult ?" Jack asked, taking a deep breath. He was trying to ignore the white face in front of him, concentrating on the throbbing pain in his knuckles. "Talk ?" Jack laughed bitterly. "Sure. I can go up to him and suggest we play a game of let's-compare-our- experiences-in-hell. That would make Daniel feel **so** much better !" 

"He needs to remember." Janet couldn't hold back any longer. "This amnesia is not due to a blow to the head or similar trauma. This is caused by Daniel's mind and only that..." 

Jack slammed another fist down on the table, making Janet jump. 

"Can you blame him ?" The colonel ran a hand through his hair with one jerky motion. "He's pretty much guessed what happened to him already-" 

"Guessed ?" Janet asked in a stunned voice. "Guessed ? Do you even realize what he might be guessing at, colonel ? He knows what happened to him. He's not guessing at anything. He **knows** ! He's denying it !" 

"And what the hell is wrong with that ?" Jack shouted back. 

"Daniel's terrified." The doctor's voice lowered, her eyes softening as she looked at the man. "He's denying it all because he's scared and he doesn't know why. He can't avoid this. It's just going to build and sooner or later it's going to flood out and take him with it." 

Janet's eyes misted over, remembering how the young man looked, when she had walked in on one of his nightmares, seeing the stark fear in his eyes before Jack could calm him down. 

"He's going to drown." 

The colonel shook his head. Janet stood there, watching Jack's head drop, his eyes returning to the table. 

"You're probably the only person who can help him now... Jack," the woman said softly. 

The colonel crossed his arms, turning slightly away from the table, from her. Janet saw Jack's chin jut out with an angry look. The air in the conference room suddenly felt hot, heavy, almost suffocating. She took a deep breath. 

"If he knows... knows he's not alone, he'll feel secure enough to remember and deal with it." 

"You don't... deal with it, doctor," Jack said in a tight voice. "Stuff like this doesn't get dealt with. It gets shoved away." 

"But it's not forgotten." 

The man looked at her out of the corner of his eye, as she spoke, making him look feral. He didn't say anything, but at least he wasn't yelling anymore. 

"It's never forgotten," Janet murmured. Despite her low voice, the words carried clear to the colonel. "Isn't that right, colonel ?" 

"What the hell do you people want me to do ?" Jack asked harshly. "You want me to go up to Daniel and say sorry you feel like shit, but I got to put you through hell again. But trust me, it'll get better after we put you through it all over again ?" 

"Yes." 

The man looked at her, his eyes narrowing to slits. 

"You've got to be kidding me. This is some new sick form of treatment ?" 

Fraiser stiffened. She could understand the anger and could even forgive it's misdirection towards her, but it didn't stop the burning feeling of frustration that was knotting up in her chest. That knot pushed up at her and came through her mouth in the worst words she could possibly say. 

"How dare you call yourself Daniel's friend ?" Janet hissed before she could stop herself. 

Jack froze. 

"You're the only person he'll probably listen to in this entire base, this entire planet at this point and all you can do is shove him back, ignore his obvious need, deny his agony !" The doctor stalked over to him, stopping in front of him. Despite the fact Jack towered her a good few inches, she glared at him. "He is absolutely terrified and probably feeling very alone-" 

"He's not alone-" 

"Yes, he is !" Janet shouted in spite of herself. "Because all Daniel hears is how it's okay, how everything will fix itself, but things aren't getting better, they're getting worse !" The doctor jabbed a finger at Jack's chest. "And you are being so goddamn selfish ! You're letting him sit there, feeling this way, just because **you** don't want to deal with it !" 

Jack started as if he was slapped. In a sense, he had been. Janet sighed, horrified at what she had said. 

"Damn you, Colonel O'Neill." She looked at him, disappointment clear in her eyes. "I would have thought that you of all people, would want to help Daniel." 

With that, she turned from Jack and began to walk away. 

"How the hell do you expect me to help Daniel deal with something *I* never could in the first place ?" Jack asked suddenly, in a dull voice. 

Turning around, Janet saw Jack take a seat again. He didn't look at her, turning the chair to face the window. She saw his shadow across the wall. It looked thin, stretched, almost fading. 

"I'm not going to be any help to him, Doc," Jack said in a soft voice, the anger, the defensive tone gone. "I have my cracks." Jack looked up at the ceiling now. "I'm not perfect. Not everything I say will be a cure all. Hell, I wouldn't even know what to say." 

"Tell him." 

The colonel was silent. 

"I'm not asking you to compare notes here, colonel. I'm asking you to share something with him, let him share your pain and he'll let you share his." 

"Words are useless in shit like this, Doc," Jack said wearily. "They never worked. Something like this can't be described with words." 

"But you can see it so vividly," the woman added gently. Jack turned back to her. 

"Yeah," Jack admitted finally. To his surprise, the room didn't melt away into a featureless cell, the silence didn't suddenly become filled with screams. He blinked at the walls. 

"I'm not trying to be cruel here... Jack." Janet came over and took the seat next to him. "I swear I want to help Daniel. He's not just a patient. He never was." Her eyes looked sad. "No one here can ever just be a patient to me. Not in a place like this. Daniel most of all." 

"That's what makes you so good, Doc," Jack quipped wanly, a small smile showing up on his lips. Janet smiled back at him. 

"Not good enough, I'm afraid," she sighed. "Not good enough to help Daniel. He won't listen to me. And I know he won't listen to Doctor Mackenzie-" She paused when she saw Jack stiffen. "I'm not saying I'm going to have him transferred to the Mental Ward, Jack." 

"He's not going there. Not again," Jack grated out, his posture straight again. 

"He's not. He won't..." Janet looked at him steadily. "That is... if you help him." 

"How ?" the man choked out. 

"I think you'll be able to figure it out." 

"Couldn't before." 

Janet reached out and touched Jack's clenched hands briefly before pulling back again. 

"He'll listen to anything you say. Start with that." 

She got up, studying the thoughtful expression on the man's face - Janet smiled briefly again and knew that it was truly okay to walk away now. As she left for the door, she heard Jack speak again. 

"Do you... believe in ghosts, Doc ?" 

Pausing, Janet didn't turn around. She looked at the room, wondering how many had walked out through this doorway, had passed through her infirmary, and how many got to walk back into this room again. 

"Yes." Janet was surprised at herself. But she did believe in such things. "I guess I do." The doctor turned around to look at Jack once more. "I have no cure for ghosts... Jack. They're just... there." 

"Can't make them go away," the colonel said numbly. 

"I don't think we're supposed to, even if we could." With that, Janet left, shutting the door behind her. 

Jack watched the doorway, mulling over her words. After a moment, he got up and left the room, looking very determined. 

* * *

_Return to me._

Daniel started, looking frantically around the room. His breathing quickened as he saw a pair of eyes glowing within the last remaining shadows of the room. Hands shaking, Daniel reached behind himself and turned the light dimmer switch higher. The shadows shrank and he thought he heard shrieking. 

_Return to me._

There they were again, on the other side now, hiding underneath the chairs shoved against the corner. 

_Return to me._

Twisting the dimmer switch further, Daniel was dismayed to find out that the light was at it's brightest. The shadows were still there, still lurking around him, hiding something. He couldn't remember what it was, but he knew it had to be horrible. 

"Daniel ?" 

The voice came from above him and he jumped, almost falling out of the bed until a pair of hands grabbed him firmly by the shoulders. Daniel fought, knowing the shadows were returning, trying to catch him unaware. He kicked wildly, his arms and legs flailing, trying to break free of the grip. They were stronger than he was. They always were. He was never strong enough to fight them. They always took him back. Always... 

"Daniel !" A sharp slap to his cheek and Daniel's head whipped back. Stunned by the blow, he sagged. The owner of the voice shook him by his shoulders and he lifted his head wearily. 

Jack. 

The revelation that it had only been Jack made his spine turn to water and Daniel nearly collapsed into his friend's strong grip, sobbing with relief. Then, as he felt the arms hesitantly wrap around his shaking shoulders, Daniel tensed and pulled away. 

"Sorry," Daniel mumbled, feeling his cheeks flush under Jack's concerned gaze. 

The colonel said nothing as he sat down on his usual chair. Daniel breathed heavily, trying to calm his hammering heart, as he sat there on the bed. He half wished Jack wasn't here to see this, all the while hoping that his friend would stay. 

"Bad dream or something ?" 

"Or something," Daniel murmured. He sat up straighter, rolling back his shoulders a bit to push back the dull twinge of his back's stitches. Jack noticed this and wondered briefly if he should call a nurse over. 

"How's the back ?" 

"Um... good. It's fine. Can move around a bit." Daniel answered in a dull voice as if he was commenting on the weather, rather than his wounds. 

_Damn, this is harder than I thought_ , Jack sighed mentally to himself, leaning into the familiar padded back of the chair. As he did, the man noticed the stack of files on the bedside table. Neat handwriting, which he recognized as Carter's, scrawled notations on a piece of paper, placed on top of the pile. _They were trying. Can't say that much about myself right now._

"Daniel-" 

"I'm a bit tired," the young man said abruptly, shifting so he could slide down to lie down on his bed. 

"Daniel." 

Something in Jack's voice made him look up. The older man looked intently at Daniel, dark eyes boring into him. As if he could see. As if he knew. 

"What ?" 

Daniel turned his eyes away from Jack's stare, fidgeting a little, caught between sitting up and lying down. Finally, Jack reached over and gripped his forearms with a firm hold that for some reason Daniel thought would shatter the bones. The grasp was never tight, just steady as always, but Daniel couldn't stop himself from yanking free. 

"I'm trying to help you sit up, Daniel," Jack said quietly and reached out again. This time, Daniel let Jack lift him up slightly to lean against the pillows. He could have done so without Jack's help, but his heart was hammering so fast, it felt as though it would explode if he made too much movement on his own. 

"I'm tired," the young man said once more, wincing inwardly at how lame it sounded. 

"And we need to talk." Jack paused. "About what happened." 

"Happened ?" Daniel flinched when he heard how shrill his voice sounded. "I don't know what you mean, Jack." 

"I think you do." 

_No, no, no. Please. Just leave me alone. No. Wait. Don't leave me alone. I... what is wrong with me ? I can't make up my mind ! Just leave me alone and don't._

"Daniel ?" Jack frowned when he saw Daniel's breath quicken, the pale bandaged hands clutching the fabric of his blankets. "Hey." He touched Daniel's hand and was startled as the young man turned to him, eyes wide. "Hey. It's just me." 

"What do you want me to say ?" Daniel choked out. 

Jack shook his head. 

"Wait. I'm going about this all wrong." Jack sighed, ducking his head a little while he gathered his thoughts. He felt Daniel pull his hand away and his chest tightened. He could almost sense Daniel was far away, out of his sight, like in missions where Jack would have to crane his neck to see the young man. 

Daniel watched Jack's shoulders slump and for a moment, concern took over any fear that welled up inside him. He leaned forward a little, then hesitated. A small sound of frustration escaped his lips before he could stop himself. Daniel couldn't think of anything to say. The sound made Jack look up. He saw the confusion in Daniel's eyes. Deciding to take the plunge, 

Jack took a deep breath. 

"We're going back, Daniel." 

Daniel didn't even need to ask what the hell Jack was talking about. 

"No..." 

He paled drastically, shaking his head. 

"I can't..." 

Jack muttered a soft curse. 

"Sorry. What I meant was... I'm going back. Not you." Not yet, that is. 

"No..." 

Jack was puzzled by the response. He would have thought Daniel would be relieved that he wasn't going. 

"Daniel ?" 

"You can't." The voice sounded faint. It reminded him of the barely audible voice Jack had heard when he first went into the cell and found Daniel there. 

"One of the To'kra came through the Stargate before," Jack continued, forcing his voice to stay calm. "He was with Carter's dad-" 

"Jacob ?" Daniel's head lifted, his mouth part-opened in shock. 

Nodding, Jack was encouraged by the question. 

"They heard... heard about what happened." The head went down again. "They were over there to investigate. They found the place. Where you were-" 

Daniel just nodded, his eyes pleading with Jack to not continue that sentence. The older man couldn't ignore the request. He coughed a little and went on. 

"As they were leaving, they were ambushed and forced to split up. The other To'kra... Tery'ka... he got back to us, but we think Carter's dad is still out there. Maybe even captured by whoever did this to you. They're not in the original place we found you. Tery'ka thinks there's another underground place that we've missed and wants us to... Daniel ?" 

Jack stopped again when he saw Daniel stiffen. Alarmed, he reached out to steady him but the young man shrank back. 

"Another ?" Daniel croaked out. 

Jack nodded. 

"Daniel, we-" 

"You can't go back there," Daniel blurted out. Jack looked at him in surprise. 

"What ? We-" 

"You can't !" Daniel abruptly surged forward and grabbed Jack by the wrist, his grip surprisingly strong. "There's... I..." He blinked, looking very confused. 

"What is it ?" the older man asked quietly. 

Daniel ducked his head, letting go of Jack's wrist. 

"I... I don't know. I just have this feeling..." He flushed. It looked odd, the spot of red against white cheeks. "Sorry. I don't know what came over me. Of course you have to g-go back. Sam's dad may need your help." 

"Actually," said Jack, steeling himself. "We need yours." Daniel looked up. 

"I checked with Tery'ka. He was talking with Sanders and the others. They don't remember ever going to a second place, but they think-" 

"That I would know," Daniel finished dully. 

"Do you ?" 

"No." 

"Daniel-" "I don't." 

"Stone and Tesh remembered times when they saw you being taken to another room instead. Could it have been to the other-" 

"I don't know !" Daniel shouted. "I don't ! I... God ! What do you want from me ? I told you I don't remember ! Why do you keep on... I thought you said it was okay ! Why now ? Why ? You didn't want me to remember before !" 

Jack flinched as if Daniel's words were a physical blow. 

"I-" 

"I don't remember, Jack." Daniel bent forward, dropping his head onto his drawn up knees. He winced at the pull of the stitches on his back, but the urge to curl up and hide was far greater. "I don't, Jack. I'm sorry. I just... d-don't." 

Jack stood up. He placed his hands on Daniel's shivering shoulders but the other man didn't lift his head. 

"Daniel. Look at me." Jack gave Daniel's shoulders a shake. "Look at me !" The young man's bleary eyes turned upward. "What do you see here ?" 

Daniel blinked. 

"What ?" 

"What do you see here ?" Jack repeated. 

"My r-room," Daniel whispered, his eyes glued to Jack's. 

"You're not looking." 

Daniel swallowed. 

"I don't understand, Jack. What are you trying to say ?" 

"What... do... you... see ?" 

Shaking his head, Daniel looked down at his lap. 

"I told you. My room." 

"Look up, Daniel," the older man said firmly. "Do you really see your room ?" 

"Y-yes." 

"Look up, Daniel." 

"N-no." 

"Why not ?" Jack squeezed the shoulders under his palms, feeling his throat tighten as he felt the tremors. _God, Danny. I'm so sorry._ "What do you see ?" 

"J-jack-" 

"What do you see ?" 

The shivering increased, to a point that Jack's hands began to slip off Daniel's shoulders. The colonel tightened his grip, leaning closer to Daniel. 

"What do you see ?" 

"Jack... don't..." 

"Come on, Daniel. Tell me." 

"I told you..." 

"Daniel !" 

His head snapped up as Daniel shoved Jack away with a strangled cry. Jack caught the other man's wrists before a fist could make contact with his chin. The scientist screamed, twisting, trying to get free, but Jack's hold was strong. 

"Daniel !" Jack's sharp voice stilled the man and he hunched over again, his hands still above him in Jack's clutches. It reminded Jack of the shackles they had found at that place and he dropped Daniel's hands in a flash. The colonel softened his voice. "Daniel." 

"Blood," Daniel choked out. "I see blood." 

Jack closed his eyes briefly. 

"It's... it's my blood..." Daniel shuddered. "It's so dark, but I can see it... I can... s-smell it... I tried... turning on the lights, but... but..." 

"It's still there." Jack sat down on the edge of the bed. 

"N-no..." 

"You still see it." Jack waved toward the lights. "That's why all the lights are on, because you tried to get rid of it." 

"N-no-" 

"Dammit, Daniel ! Look at me !" Jack grabbed him by the forearms, giving the man a stern shake. "Look around you ! See what's there !" 

"No !" Pale arms shot out and shoved Jack so hard he fell back off the bed. Stunned, Jack sat there as Daniel cast teary eyes on him. "Why ? Why are you doing this ? Why can't you leave this alone ?" 

"Daniel, you need to rem-" 

"I DON'T REMEMBER !" Daniel screamed. 

One of the medics passing by heard the noise and opened the door to the room. Jack whipped his head around at the intrusion. 

"Is everything okay ?" he inquired. 

"Get out !" Jack demanded as he got up to get over to Daniel again. 

"B-but..." 

"I said get out ! Get the hell out of here !" Jack stalked over to the door and slammed it none too politely in the man's face. He turned around and to his dismay, Daniel was pressed up against the back of his bed. "Daniel, you have to keep your back-" 

"Get away from me," the young man said in a tight voice. 

Jack blinked. 

"What ?" 

"Get... away from me. Leave me alone." 

Jack shook his head. 

"No. I'm not leaving you alone. Not without this being settled." 

"There's nothing to settle. I don't remember. Leave me alone." 

"I can't." 

"W-why ?" Daniel cast sorrowful eyes towards his friend. "Why are you doing this to me ?" 

"I'm trying to help-" 

"Help ?" Daniel gave a strange laugh. "You're helping me ? This is help ?" 

Jack looked at Daniel solemnly. Shaking his head, Daniel rubbed his face with his hands. 

"Just leave me alone, Jack. I'm tired." 

"We need to talk about this-" 

"There's nothing to talk about !" Daniel shouted, waving his hands. "Nothing ! Leave me alone !" 

"Daniel-" 

"Get out !" 

Jack took a step closer. The young man glared at him, hands curling into fists. 

"Get out !" 

"I'm not leaving here until we-" 

Daniel stumbled out of the bed. Before Jack could rush forward to help, Daniel staggered forward, crashing into the bedside table. The pile of folders tilted a bit. He shoved away Jack's hands. 

"Get out ! Leave me alone !" The young man pushed Jack away from him, crashing into the table once more. The colonel reached out to help him but it only enraged him more. "Stop it !" Daniel stumbled away from his hands. "Just leave me alone. Please ! Just get out !" 

"Daniel-" 

"You bastard !" Daniel seethed. "Why can't you just leave ?" 

"I'm trying to help-" 

"I don't want your help !" 

Jack grabbed him by the shoulders before Daniel could twist away. The young man struggled desperately, but a frustrated cry escaped his lips when he couldn't. 

"I don't want your help !" 

"You're going to get my help whether you want it or not !" Jack roared before he could stop himself. He reeled back in shock when Daniel blanched. "Oh God, Daniel. I'm sorry, I-" 

Taking advantage of the moment, Daniel shoved Jack away, succeeding in breaking free. He ran into the table and the folders brushed against his hip. Daniel grabbed a few and flung them angrily at Jack. The man just stood there as the papers flew across the room, landing on the floor silently. 

"Get out." Daniel's voice was no longer loud. He slid down to the floor, his knees turning to water. "Leave me alone." He pressed his head down to the bed, turning deliberately away from his friend. 

"I'm going on this mission, Daniel," Jack said quietly. "And when I come back, we're going to talk. Even if I have to stay locked up in this room with you. For as long as it takes." 

Daniel ignored him, pointedly staring at the wall in front of him, kneeling down on the floor. 

"I'm not leaving you alone here," Jack continued, his voice hoarse. "Because I know what it's like." 

The shoulders tensed, but Daniel still wouldn't turn around. 

"You know what I see ?" Jack glanced around the painfully bright room. "In here ?" His eyes wandered back to Daniel. "I see stone walls, Danny. I see bars on a window, dirt on the floor. Everything looked dirty. Everything smelled dirty. You couldn't wash it out. Just standing there gave you the sense of filth." 

The colonel's voice lowered as he saw the room flicker. "Just standing there... sitting there... for four months..." Jack saddened when he saw Daniel didn't turn around. "I know what it's like. I swear to you. I do." Jack rubbed his eyes and was startled to find his hands were shaking. "I tried turning on every light there was, but it never goes away. Not this way. Not your way." 

Jack thought he heard a sound from Daniel, but the young man wasn't moving so he thought he was mistaken. 

"You're going to remember, Danny. Whether you want to or not. So no... I'm not going to leave you alone. Even if it means..." Jack swallowed, trying to push back the lump in his throat. "If it means you'll hate me for the rest of your life." 

Jack stood there for a little while longer but when Daniel made no effort to turn around, his shoulders slumped. Quietly, he turned around and opened the door. The colonel looked back once more, but the kneeling figure did not move so he left. 

Just as the door closed, Daniel lifted his head, mouth opened as if to call to Jack but when the door clicked, he laid his head back down on the bed again, his fists clenched tightly. 

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

"Colonel O'Neill ?" 

Sam and Teal'c stood outside the room, having been notified by someone about the noise. Janet stood a few feet away, studying the colonel silently. 

"Well..." Jack found his throat to be dry for some reason. "That went... well." 

"Sir." Sam stepped forward. 

"We have to get ready for the mission, Major." Jack lifted a hand to stop whatever she was going to say. "We can't waste any more time." 

"Daniel-" 

Jack looked back through the glass in the door - he could still see the mess of papers littering the floor, the hunched over man by the bed. 

"Give him time." Jack looked back at the rest of his team. "Give me time. We... I... started this. I'm going to finish it. Let's just get this mission over with. Get your father back." The colonel shoved his hands in his pockets and sighed. "The rest will come after the mission." 

Sam and Teal'c looked at each other doubtfully. Jack had to restrain himself from snapping at them. 

"Do we have any choice ?" Jack said instead. "The clock's ticking." 

"Yes sir," Sam murmured. She nodded towards Janet, glanced back towards the closed door and went down the hall to get her gear ready. 

Teal'c paused in front of Jack. He nodded slightly towards Jack, his dark eyes understanding and then he left too. 

"Hey Doc ?" 

Janet stayed where she was. 

"Yes ?" 

Jack touched the surface of the door with his fingertips. 

"We gotta go." 

Jack ran two fingers up and down the metal face, fingertips brushing against the rough surface of paint on the door. He looked very torn, reluctant to leave now. Smiling sadly, Janet nodded. 

"I'll watch him," she whispered. "We'll be waiting." 

Nodding, Jack turned away from the door, away from Janet and went down the hall. But Janet caught the anguished look on his face before the man turned the corner. 

"We'll be waiting," Janet murmured again. 

* * *

SG-3 and the remainder of SG-1 stood in front of the ramp, watching the MALP probe make its way slowly up to the activated wormhole, in no rush to reach its destination. Judging by the anxious looks on the soldiers' faces, the tense expressions on the faces of the people up in the observation room, it was going too slow for their liking. 

"How about I go over there and give it a push, sir ?" Anderson muttered to Johnson. 

"I could help you, Terry," Booker volunteered with a wry grin. 

The SG-3 commanding officer just grunted as he checked on his men's gear. He nodded towards Major Carter and Teal'c, signaling that everything checked out. The woman nodded back absently, her eyes glued to the probe despite the blinding sparkles of the event horizon. As soon as the probe disappeared, everyone turned to look towards the observation room. 

Jack, with his arms crossed, stared at the glass panel, watching the meter scroll across the panel, beeping as it charted the probe's journey. When it stopped at the dot that represented the planet designated P7J973, the technician announced that it had arrived. Now everyone's attention was on the monitors as one of the technicians began to maneuver the camera on the probe through radio control. The computer screen flickered once, then focused, revealing the stone platform of the Stargate on the other side. In the distance, a faint row of trees lined the horizon. 

"There," Tery'ka said, pointing towards a road leading away from the Stargate. "We traveled this road and found the first structure underground." 

General Hammond nodded. 

"Any idea where the second one may be ?" 

"Your men provided no clues. And your Doctor Jackson... would not talk to me," Tery'ka said stiffly. 

Jack scowled at the remark but said nothing. His eyes narrowed as he looked at the screen. 

"Do you remember which direction the guards were coming from when they ambushed you ?" 

"They came from behind. From where, I do not know." 

"General Hammond." 

The three men turned towards the stairway. Smith and Tesh were standing there at attention, dressed in their fatigues. 

"What is this ?" Hammond asked quietly, darting a surprised look over at the colonel, who shrugged. Saluting, Smith motioned towards his teammate Tesh. 

"Permission to join the mission, sir." 

"You're on stand down," Jack reminded them softly. 

"Sir, we may be able to assist. If we could just see that place again..." Smith glanced over to his comrade, who nodded. "I'm pretty sure we could remember something that may help." 

"I can't allow you to just-" 

"General Hammond. Sir," Tesh finally spoke up. "We would like to get right back into action, sir. This happened to us. I would like to know why." 

"Sir ?" Jack murmured. 

"What does Doctor Fraiser say about all this ?" Hammond asked. 

"Doctor Fraiser doesn't like it." A wry voice spoke up from behind the men. Janet Fraiser emerged from between Smith and Tesh. "Not one bit, but their wounds are completely healed due to this nimertha. They are physically fit for duty, General Hammond." 

Jack raised an eyebrow towards the doctor. Janet frowned. 

"I didn't say I liked it." She sighed. "But I also understand their need to go back." Janet pointedly looked at Jack as she spoke. 

"They could be helpful, sir," Jack murmured. "Give us an advantage." 

General Hammond pursed his lips as he thought it over. He eyed the men, barely standing still as they tried to stare forward at attention. He smiled briefly. These were his men. His people. There was a reason why they were here. Hammond placed his trust in that. 

"Alright, but at the first sign of trouble, I want these men back here. Understood ?" 

"Yes sir !" Smith and Tesh chorused. 

Jack smiled at them before turning back to Tery'ka. 

"What can we expect over there ?" he asked Tery'ka. "What was their manpower ?" 

"There were many Jaafa on the surface, but I could not track where they were from. No one guards the Stargate." 

"Any type of airborne craft ?" Hammond asked as he eyed the monitors. The probe scanned left and right. No sign of anyone. Heat sensors were picking up nothing. 

"None. Just the guards." 

"We've got the forest for cover as we did last time. Circle around the abandoned village, stay within cover, and we should be okay, sir," Jack muttered as he checked his watch. "Twenty four hours, sir ?" 

"Agreed," Hammond said. "Send back a signal in twenty four or we will assume the worst." 

The colonel nodded curtly. Assume the worst meant either risking more reinforcements or locking out their signal. Jack looked down into the embarkation room. After what had happened to the first team who went through to P7J973, it would mean the latter. 

He followed Tery'ka out to the stairs, silently looking at the doctor as he did. Janet's eyes followed the man until he disappeared down the stairs. The To'kra went ahead of the colonel as Jack slowed his steps to let Smith and Tesh catch up. 

"You guys sure about this ?" Jack asked under his breath. 

"It's our best chance, Colonel," Smith murmured back. "I didn't get a chance to check on Doctor Jackson, but I saw what they did to Major Sanders and Stone." The man's lips thinned into a white line. 

Tesh spoke up next to Smith. "We need to go back, sir." 

Jack stopped them with his hand. 

"This isn't about revenge." 

The two looked back at the colonel steadily. 

"Are you sure about that... sir ?" 

Frowning, Jack narrowed his eyes. 

"I'm not going to take you through with me in that frame of mind. We're here to rescue General Carter." 

"Finding the assholes who did this would be the free prize inside the Cracker Jack box. Right, sir ?" Smith muttered. 

Jack looked at their faces and saw something in their eyes that he had seen in his for the past few days. And he understood. 

"We want to find out why this happened, sir," Tesh added, trying to explain their motivation. 

"There may not be any answers over there," Jack warned. 

"Hell, if I wanted answers, I wouldn't have worked here then," Smith grumbled. "I would have gone to work in a library." 

Jack grinned crookedly. He clapped Smith's shoulder. 

"Let's go," he said, then stepped away and picked up the pace down the stairs. 

"Colonel O'Neill ?" 

The man looked up and found the two soldiers were still standing there looking a bit embarrassed now. 

"What ?" 

Smith and Tesh suddenly stood up straighter. But it was Smith who spoke up. 

"We would like to officially apologize, sir... for trying to... uh... kill you." 

Smith and Tesh looked at each other sheepishly before turning back to O'Neill. Jack shrugged, smiling dryly. 

"Apologies accepted. Matter over. Happens all the time. I 'm just a popular guy." 

With that, he waved at them to hurry up. The two soldiers grinned at each other before quickening their pace to catch up. 

The bulk doors opened, letting them in and Jack accepted his backpack from Carter. Checking everything quickly, Jack gave a thumbs up towards the observation booth. Hammond leaned towards the microphone. 

"SG-1. SG-3. You have twenty-four hours. Find out what you can and be careful out there. Good luck." He turned to the technicians by the computers. "Dial up the address." 

The men watched stoically as the chevrons lit up one by one again, the wormhole bursting into life after the last one locked. Jack waved a salute towards the observation booth, then motioned the others to move out. 

One by one, the men disappeared into the event horizon until finally it came to Jack's turn. To everyone's surprise, the colonel stood there at first, just inches away from the Stargate. He turned back around, looking towards the embarkation room. Something strange flitted across his face as his eyes found Doctor Fraiser still standing inside the observation booth, but he turned back to the Stargate before anyone could see clearly. Then he squared his shoulders and dove in. 

+++++++++++++++++ 

As usual, the arrival was abrupt. No matter how many times Jack went through the damn thing, the end of the ride always had him skidding a bit before stopping. When he did, he automatically whipped around with his rifle, checking to see if everyone was here. The others stood there, down one step on the platform, looking at Jack expectantly. 

"Okay." The colonel made his decisions quickly. "Johnson, you go ahead with the plan and take point at the edge of the forest." He nodded towards the distant line of trees. "It'll provide you with the best cover and a clear view of any... unfriendlies coming in. Smith, Tesh, you're with us. Carter, you and Teal'c take point. Tery'ka, it might be better if you were behind them. I'll take rear. Dan-" 

Jack froze. Carter looked at the colonel sympathetically but said nothing as Jack tried to recover. Luckily, it didn't look like any of SG-3 had noticed the slip. 

"Let's go," Jack said gruffly. He readjusted his grip on his pack before following behind Tery'ka. Johnson murmured good luck as the team went by SG-3 before barking orders to his own men. 

"Okay ladies, pick up your gear and let's go. Booker, get that rover back through the Stargate. We don't want to leave anything around for them to know they have guests. Tomes, we need that radio antenna up fast before we're forced to use smoke signals. Anderson, get that perimeter wired." 

Jack didn't hear the rest of the orders, knowing full well that Johnson had the situation well in hand. He nodded towards the others and they silently made their way towards the path into the forest. 

+++++++++++++++++ 

As expected, they had arrived. 

Eyes shone with displeasure when the orb showed the new arrivals. One of the arrivals was as they had expected, but the one person they had also wanted was not there, and this made the eyes glow bright with rage. 

"Mistress." A Jaafa approached those eyes, the leader seated on a throne in the midst of gilded walls etched with hieroglyphics. Bowing slightly to pay his respects, the First Prime waited for her signal to give him permission to speak. 

"What is it ?" the melodic voice demanded. 

"The Tau'ri have returned with the Tok'ra who had escaped." 

"I do not see the other." 

"Nor do I, Mistress. I expect they may not have brought him because he was too gravely injured." 

Hissing, the leader slammed a slender hand down on the armrest of the throne. Her Jaafa took a step back. 

"This is unacceptable !" 

"I am sorry, Mistress," the Jaafa mumbled his apologies. "But the one you wished destroyed is here. Surely-" 

With an abrupt move, the leader lifted her hand, revealing the large gem within her palm. It lit up with a fiery red glow. The Jaafa gasped as it's deadly gleam touched his forehead. His knees buckled and the Jaafa's massive frame dropped to the ground before her. 

"It is not enough !" the leader snarled. "*He* must be here !" The gem silently burned brighter, increasing the agony within the warrior. 

"M-mistress..." the Jaafa garbled as he felt his insides twist and coil. The whites of his eyes were showing. His hands cramped up into claws as his body shook with pain. "I beg... f-forgiveness... I did not mean..." 

"Get me the Tau'ri I seek. I will deal with this myself !" 

With that, she flicked her slender wrist, releasing her hold on him. The Jaafa stumbled away, terrified of the slight figure on the throne, his feet spurred on half by fear and half by loyalty. As the footsteps faded away, she turned back to the glass orb in front of her. Wavering images of the humans making their way through the forest made her hiss once more. 

"I will have my revenge, Tau'ri and I will have what I deserve. You will pay for what your betrayal and the last thing you'll see before you die will be the fruits of my labors ! We will truly enjoy seeing the expression on your face as you realize our plan !" The leader tilted her head and laughed, the sound of it carrying out to the hallways of her ship, buried deep underground. 

* * *

"There." Tery'ka pointed to the top of the ridge. "I was there with Selmac before the ambush. We separated there. I went down the path we are on right now and he went towards the back of the village." 

Carter glanced in the direction the To'kra was pointing. She noted the smoke floating above the trees. 

"Sir, something's burning over there." 

"The village is in that direction," the To'kra whispered. 

"Why are they burning it after it has been abandoned for so long ?" Sam whispered, but the To'kra shook his head, not knowing the answer to that. 

Jack narrowed his eyes at Tery'ka. There was something wrong. He just couldn't put his finger on it. 

"Did you find anything in that place ?" the colonel asked. 

"Nothing of importance." 

"And what is important to you ?" Jack asked in a stiff voice. That little feeling grew to full-blown paranoia. Carter and Teal'c exchanged a surprised look. 

"Sir-" the Major began. 

"The village was deserted. It was in ruins. Nothing remained that would provide us with clues," Tery'ka replied in a flat voice. His eyes glowed a little as he turned towards another direction. "Our best hope is to return to the first area." The Tok'ra glanced over at the two other soldiers, who were looking intently around to make sure no one was following. 

"Smith, Tesh. We're going to head back to where we had found you." The colonel looked questioningly at the two. The larger man, Smith, nodded. 

"Think there's a way to the other place through there, Tery'ka ?" Sam asked. The To'kra shrugged one shoulder. 

"There is... that possibility," Tery'ka said vaguely. 

Jack scowled. 

"Okay people. Let's head out back to the first site. Smith. You and Tesh follow behind me. Teal'c, watch our backs. Keep radio contact with Johnson every two hours or so." 

With that settled, the group headed out, unaware of an observer tracking a few yards behind them. 

++++++++++++++++++ 

_You know what to do._

Daniel gasped, lurching forward as he was suddenly awake. He blinked as the room blurred before him. Lights and colors blended into a strange mist. 

_Return to me._

"Stop it," Daniel muttered. 

He bunched his fists and pounded at the bed below him. That was when he realized he wasn't on the floor any more. The young man flushed when he realized that someone must have come in when he fell asleep on the floor, picked him up and placed him back on the bed. Daniel pounded a fist on the bed once more. 

It meant that they were checking on him. It meant... that they weren't leaving him alone. 

Frowning, the man looked around and found the scattered papers were neatly stacked up again, placed in a pile back on the bedside table. No sign of what had happened before, of words said and unsaid, or of the door that closed after he basically told one of his closest friends to get out of his life. 

Moaning softly, his anger fled, Daniel dropped his head into his hands. 

_What am I doing ? What am I doing ?_

_Return to me._

Daniel jerked, looking up with wide eyes. He whipped his head around, ignoring the wave of nausea that movement created. Nothing. 

No one was here. 

No glowing eyes. 

No soft spoken voice. 

_It wasn't her._

Daniel jumped again. 

_Her ?_

Who was he thinking of ? He frowned, trying to concentrate, but his hands trembled again, his vision blurred and his head pounded. So he abandoned the attempt. 

_Return to me._

The man shuddered. It had sounded louder this time. He couldn't distract himself with anything. The white walls and pinprick glow of the machines did nothing to abate his fears. The lights were turned on to their fullest, but Daniel still felt the overwhelming shadows. They were towering over him, taking all the air with their presence, leeching all the light away, hovering over him, smothering him- 

Daniel stumbled out of the bed, his chest heaving. He clutched the edge of the bed until he could regain his footing. Gasping, he looked around. 

Still nothing. 

But he felt it. Something was wrong. Something was terribly wrong. 

Daniel rested his head on the edge of the bed, too tired to try and summon the strength to straighten his knees to lift himself off the floor. He closed his eyes, mentally trying to distract himself with his own voice. He tried reciting the alphabet. When that didn't work, he tried doing it in Greek, but his mind was spinning so fast, he couldn't figure out what came after mu. 

"I know twenty three languages," Daniel said to himself, laughing strangely, "and I can't remember what comes after mu...." 

_Return to me._

"Stop it," Daniel hissed. "Stop it !" 

The bathroom beckoned to him from afar, the sink sure to provide cool water to wash the dirt, the grime away from his skin. 

Pushing up with his hands, hissing as sore wrists ached from the strain, Daniel got up. He wobbled a little, having relied for so long on others to help him get to from one place to another. After a few hesitant steps, Daniel was pleased to find himself not crashing to the floor again. It felt like a huge feat and he was half tempted to just stand there and enjoy the moment, but then he blushed. 

"So I walked. Big deal," Daniel muttered, disgusted with himself again. 

_I should have been walking in the first place. I may trip and stumble, but it's under my own steam._

_"Watch it, Doc," Stone muttered, one hand already reaching out to catch him, but it wasn't necessary. Daniel righted himself quickly enough. The scientist looked sheepish as he tilted back his hat._

_"You're almost as bad as Jack," Daniel joked as he continued down the path leading to the village. He could already see the tops of the broken down roofs. He quickened his pace eagerly._

_"Doctor Jackson !" Stone called out and Daniel thought with a smile that no matter where he went, someone was bound to sound like Jack the moment he wandered too far. So he stopped at the edge of the path, the light that was breaking through the thinning trees warm against his back._

_The soldier ran up, a little breathless from running in order to catch up with him._

_"Colonel O'Neill would have our hides hanging up in the embarkation room if anything happened to you."_

_Daniel frowned at the words._

_"Jack hasn't been bothering you guys, has he ?"_

_Grinning, Stone shrugged._

_"Nah. Just threatened us all with bodily harm if something happens. That's all. The usual."_

_Daniel chuckled._

_"Sorry."_

_"Hey. It's no big deal. Just hurry up and have your fun with your rocks-"_

_"Artifacts."_

_"Uuh huh... Colonel O'Neill warned us about your quirk with that."_

_Shaking his head, Daniel continued on to the clearing._

_"It's not a quirk," he muttered. Stone must have heard, because he laughed softly as he followed behind him._

_The structures in the village were relatively intact. Daniel puzzled over the sight of brown colored huts mingling with the brighter colored ones._

_"Social structure ? Upper caste ? Lower caste ?" he murmured._

_"What ? Did you say something, Doctor Jackson ?"_

_Daniel waved Stone off, already lost in thought. He was beginning to wish that he had more equipment, or at least more manpower. Then they could have started marking off possible dig areas. But this was only a secondary reconnaisance, before any proposals could be made to the General on whether or not the site was worth their time at all._

_"Weird," Daniel muttered as he poked at the dark-colored ash on the ground. If he hand't known any better, he would have sworn that was new._

_"What are you doing ?" Stone asked curiously as the young man began to scrape paint off one of the huts._

_"Stuff," Daniel muttered, ignoring the soldier as he studied the brown layer underneath the paint he chipped away._

_"Stuff ?" Stone repeated dubiously._

_Daniel waved him off again as he scribbled down some of the inscriptions he found scrawled on the walls. The soldier behind him sighed._

_"Stone, you still there ?"_

_The radio came suddenly to life. Smith's voice, garbled, came through._

_"Stone, can you read me ?"_

_The soldier pulled out his radio and answered._

_"Yeah, Smith. Jackson's in front of me, doing... stuff."_

_Daniel rolled his eyes but went on to the next wall, turning the corner of the hut to follow the line of inscriptions._

_"Stuff ? Is that the technical term ?" The voice on the other end sounded amused._

_The words in the inscriptions were disjointed, as if newer sentences were written over the old. Daniel noticed the faint outline of washed-off words and wondered why they would do such a thing._

_"Well that's how he put it. I asked him and sort of mumbled something when... what the hell ?"_

_Daniel's head whipped up, his mouth dropping open when he heard the whine. He knew that sound. But before he could even put a name to it, he felt strong arms grabbing him from behind, wrenching his arms painfully back. Daniel didn't have a chance to cry out because suddenly, a foul lukewarm liquid was filling his mouth. The anthropologist choked, trying to spit it out._

_"Stone ?"_

_The radio now on the ground, crackled out an inquiry. Stone dropped it as he threw one guard over his back and shot the other. But there were so many. The soldier turned to tell Daniel to run for it, but it was too late._

_"Stone ? Hey, John ?"_

_One heavy metal boot stomped viciously at the radio and it was destroyed, the last words from Smith cut off._

_Daniel tried to twist away but one of his captors kicked him in the back and he fell to the ground. He coughed as the liquid trickled down his throat. He could only watch as Stone fell to the ground, blood flowing out of his mouth and ears. The soldier twitched a little, sparks dancing across his limp body. Daniel looked up and saw the zat gun snap back into a smaller shape after firing._

_"Idiot !"_

_A blow to the back of the guard had Daniel thinking it was help arriving, but the rest of the guards suddenly went down on one knee._

_"He is useless to us now !" a voice shouted, the whish of skirts following._

_Daniel struggled, trying to break free of the grip that imprisoned him, but a stomp on his ankles sent him stumbling again, his face slamming into the dirt._

_"Do not harm him ! You ! Let him up ! And you ! Wait for the others. They are sure to come now !"_

_Blearily, Daniel looked up and saw pale feet, adorned with gems around the ankles. Swallowing, he strained to lift his head. A hand suddenly grabbed his hair, stretching his head back. Daniel gritted his teeth, preventing the cry that was threatening to come out. But the pain was so intense, tears filled his eyes, blinding him to the voice that approached._

_A gentle hand caressed his cheek._

_"Good. We are pleased to see you. There is so much we need of you." A cruel laugh filled his ears. The hand wandered down to his neck, touching briefly over the jugular vein. "Your heart beats fast. Are you so glad to see us ?"_

_"N-not... really," Daniel managed and got a slap in the face for that. The hand behind him pulled back even further and for a second, Daniel thought the guards were going to snap his head off. It felt like it, as his neck muscles bunched up like red angry cords, his shoulders hardening into knots._

_"You have learned his tongue too well. I will have to change that." The voice was harsh now. "Give him some more."_

_Before Daniel could even figure out what the voice was talking about, he felt large hands reaching into his mouth, prying it open. He struggled, clawing at the hands, but there were so many of them. Kicking at the surrounding legs got him nowhere except closer to the ground. He shouted angrily at them, but one just laughed before a cold metal rim clanged against his teeth. It tilted and the same foul-tasting liquid flooded the caverns of his mouth._

_"No..." Daniel garbled, spitting some of the liquid out until one guard boxed his ears. Dazed, he couldn't stop them from pouring in more and more. He was drowning, he couldn't breathe, but if he tried to breathe, he would have to swallow..._

_Ironically, his eyes cleared of the pain-filled tears the moment he swallowed the liquid, and he saw the faint outline of a person standing in front of him, watching the guards force the potion into him. The person grew clearer and Daniel's eyes went wide. He gasped as the guards grabbed at his throat, forcing his mouth shut with their massive hands, and he had no choice but to swallow. But his eyes weren't wide because of that._

_It was because of the person in front of him. And as his vision faded away, he started screaming for Jack in his mind..._

Daniel staggered back, his hands lashing out to fight off his assailants. When his palms met only air, he stopped. 

"Oh God," he choked out. It felt so real. Even now, he could taste the liquid burning the insides of his throat, his chest heaving as it did back then. He wasn't trying to remember. Why did this memory come upon him ? On its own ? 

_Return to me._

Daniel groaned, knuckling his eyes to clear the last of the images away, begging them to stay away, whatever they were. He eyed the bathroom once more. It looked so far away now. But the need to wash away the foul taste in his mouth was greater. 

Taking a deep breath, the young man made his way slowly towards the bathroom again. He reached for the bathroom door for support, causing it to swing shut in front of him. 

Cursing it, Daniel stopped at the sight of his reflection. He swallowed, remembering the angry looking scabs from last time. His eyes locked on his own face, seeing the marks along his hairline, but he didn't dare touch them. Something about them scared him. They were there because... 

Daniel closed his eyes, shaking his head angrily at himself. He was letting his own reflection spook him. He opened his eyes again... 

And screamed. 

Glowing eyes overlapped his blue ones. 

Stumbling, Daniel fell back onto the ground, gasping as he clawed behind him for a weapon. He felt the sharp corner of something flat and he turned around to see what it was. 

A photo. 

Daniel whipped his head back towards the mirror, but the eyes were gone. 

_You're imagining things. It wasn't real. It wasn't real._

Daniel wheezed, breathless, too winded to try and get up. His hands clenched and something in his right hand crunched. Remembering the photo, Daniel lifted his hand up, seeing the glossy paper curled in his fist. Loosening his hand, Daniel looked at what it was and blanched. 

It was one of the photos inserted in the field report. The serious tanned face of Major Sanders stared back at him, unblinking, unmarred with the cuts and bruises he now carried from that mission. 

_"Hey, get away from him !" Sanders shouted as the other guard approached the shackled figure hanging from the ceiling. "Hey ! Over here, you bastards ! Over here !"_

_Daniel shuddered, feeling the very air move as the large warrior came closer. He bit his lower lip, trapping the whimper within, but his body betrayed him and started shaking again. It knew. Even if he tried not to think about it. It knew what the guard held in his hands, the thick coil that had bitten into his back before._

_"You son of a bitch !" Sanders roared, trying to distract the guard, to get him to come over there instead. "Over here ! You want a fight ? I'll give you a goddamn fight ! You little piece of shit !" Chains rattled as the Major unsuccessfully tried to reach the center of the room, to the guard, but the chains attached to the wall were too short._

_"What will it be ?" the voice asked softly, the hand trailing down the center of his collarbone, lazily making circles on his chest with long fingers. "Yes or no ?"_

_The price was too high. Daniel knew it. They all knew it. But... but..._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_Everything hurt._

_"Yes or no."_

_Where's Jack ? Where **is** he ? _

_Daniel's swollen eyes looked away from the leader, to the door. He wasn't there. He never came._

_It's been... days ? Weeks ? How long ?_

_He never came._

_That other person. The one who stood there watching them beat him. That wasn't him. That wasn't Jack._

_"He won't come to save you."_

_Lies._

_"He belongs to me now." The voice laughed._

_Lies. All lies._

_"The pain will only continue. He will not help you."_

_Lies. They... they had to be lies._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_The guard stood over him now, one hand shaking the chains and manacles on his bleeding wrists._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_Yes._

_"N-no," Daniel whispered._

_"Thirty to the other," the voice hissed and the guard moved away._

_"No !" Daniel cried out louder, trying to turn, to plead with the guard as the Jaafa stepped away and towards Sanders. "No ! Please ! Leave him alone !"_

_Daniel shut his eyes when he heard the first scream._

Eyes flew open and Daniel flung the photo away. He could feel the bile building in his throat, threatening to choke him. He swallowed hard, looking around the room again. He could still hear Sanders. And Smith. And Tesh. And Stone. 

All screaming. 

Telling them to leave him alone. Because he was too weak to do it himself. 

Screaming when he said no. 

Screaming when he said... yes. 

He couldn't stay here. 

The room was too small. 

There was no air. 

He couldn't stay here. 

Too many shadows. 

Too dark. 

He couldn't stay here! 

Daniel lurched to his feet and staggered half dazed to the door. He wrenched the knob open and escaped from his room. 

* * *

The smell was what got to him first. 

Jack stopped himself from reeling back when they arrived back at the same ivy covered archway, the only sign that there was something down below. Teal'c, normally able to maintain a passive face, grimaced at the smell, too. 

The air reeked of death. 

It reeked of decaying bodies. 

It reeked of dried blood. 

"Shit," Tesh muttered, unable to contain himself as he covered his nose with the end of one sleeve. He glanced over to his friend, who just made a face and took a step back. 

Jack darted a look over to Sam, pointing to his face with a circling finger. The Major understood completely, undid the straps of her backpack and began pulling out her gas mask. The other soldiers copied her, donning the camouflage gear over their heads. She passed one over to Tery'ka, who refused. 

"I do not require protection," he said, not taking the mask she offered. 

Teal'c lifted an eyebrow towards the Tok'ra but said nothing as he too took the gas mask and fitted it over his face. It was more for blocking the smell, than anything else. Normally Teal'c wouldn't have been bothered by such trivial things, but his mind wondered how much of the blood spilled was of his comrades and decided he no longer wished to smell the repulsive scent. 

Jack gave his group a quick once over. Satisfied that everyone was ready, he motioned everyone to follow behind him and Teal'c. One by one, slipping under the thick veil of greenery, they entered the complex once more. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

It was lucky for Daniel that the guard posted by the end of the hallway was taking a break to get some coffee. Otherwise, he might have been stopped. 

He couldn't stay in the room any longer. The walls were beginning to look dark, towering over him, the ceiling appearing further and further away from his sight. He had to leave. 

But where was he going ? 

Daniel hobbled a little, leaning against the wall in the hallway, feeling foolish now. 

There really was no place for him to go. He couldn't go to his bunkroom, the temporary quarters he slept in on days when he was working too late to catch a ride back into town. The idea of sleep no longer appealed to him. 

The cafeteria was definitely out. The idea of food nauseated him to the point that he could throw up just from the thought of it. 

So Daniel went to his office. 

Although the room he had crammed all his belongings into was nearby, just down the stairs, it took what felt like forever to reach it. Every step he took, Daniel winced, wishing he had at least thought of bringing some shoes to wear. Although the bandages had been taken off, the burns on his soles were still sensitive to the cold concrete floor. Daniel was just glad that he had been wearing his robe already, otherwise the prospect of wearing just the paper-thin hospital gown would have almost been enough to make him turn back. 

Almost. 

Daniel breathed a sigh of relief when he reached the door. With a little push, the door swung open with ease, the lights still on, probably from the last time he had been here. He never bothered locking the door, not at all worried that anyone would want to steal anything. The only person, if any, who bothered to come in here would have been... 

Jack. 

But he wasn't here right now. 

Just like before. 

Daniel frowned, wondering why that bothered him. Why he was concerned about the fact that Jack hadn't been there the whole time, the two weeks... 

_No, he said it was only three days._

No memories came to him, that could tell him how long it was. But somehow... somehow, it felt longer. Daniel could feel the length of time, dragging on his legs and arms like iron weights, pulling him down to the ground, dragging him to the floor- 

He needed to sit down. 

Daniel reached the chair in front of his computer before his knees finally gave out. Shakily, he sat down into the padded seat. As soon as he did, Daniel dropped his head onto his crossed arms. 

After a few seconds like that, he blearily looked up and at his room again. 

The office was quiet, as he always needed it to be when he stayed here late at night, as he often did, doing translations for some team or another. He had deliberately chosen the far corner, the end of the row of labs where traffic would be sparse. The peace and quiet provided him the perfect sanctuary for him, when the ache of Sha'uri's absence was too sharp, or when a mission ended too disappointingly, too tragically to just be resolved with a good night's sleep. 

But it was too quiet now. And yet he didn't want anyone to come in either. 

Daniel rubbed his eyes wearily, wondering to himself what it was he wanted exactly. 

_Wanted to be left alone._

_And I was._

_So why is my heart hammering so loud ?_

Daniel turned around, his eyes studying every artifact, every piece of cracked pottery, the books and the furniture, trying to detect anything or anyone lurking. Nothing. His usual stuff was there - scattered notebooks, numerous cups full of pencils with the ends chewed, and empty Styrofoam cups from his coffee binges by the sink in the center- 

One of the cups wasn't empty. 

Frowning, Daniel wondered if he had left a cup there before leaving for the mission, but he couldn't recall being back here in the office before departing. Then again, he didn't remember leaving for P7J973 either. 

Daniel rolled his chair over to the desk in the center of the room and took the cup, still half filled with the light colored liquid. He gave it a cautious sniff and realized it was coffee with milk. 

_I drink it black._

Of that much, Daniel was sure. 

_Only Jack drinks it-_

Jack. 

So Jack had been here, in his office. Judging the light stained line on the cup, it couldn't have been too long ago. 

_When they came back with me ?_

Daniel eyed the cup, turning it around with his hands. Somehow, the thought that Jack was here, even if days before, made him feel a little better. He set the cup down, by the computer station. The young man looked at it thoughtfully, wondering if Jack had been seated on the very chair he occupied now, drinking the once warm coffee, staring round his office. 

He had told Jack to get out. 

He had refused Jack's help. 

Sighing, Daniel dropped his head back onto his folded arms. He rested like that, on top of the desk, the edge of the computer keyboard pressing against his forehead- 

"Daniel ?" 

With a gasp, Daniel sat up, his arms up to ward away the enemy. But all he heard was a startled gasp, his chair rolled back into one of his bookcases, rattling one of the vases stored there until it fell to the floor, shattering into a million pieces. 

"Daniel." 

Blinking, he focused on the fuzzy image of short brunette hair, warm concerned eyes on him, and the white lab coat that could only mean- 

"Janet ?" Daniel called out faintly. 

Nodding, the doctor sat down on the other chair, one hand on his shoulder to steady him, taking advantage of the touch to gauge his condition. She felt the minute shivers of a shoulder too thin for her liking. But Daniel must have suspected her intentions and he shrugged away her hand, pretending to move his chair a bit to give her room. 

"What are you doing down here ?" Fraiser asked, a mild reproach in her voice. "Came by to see how you were doing and saw you were gone." She didn't mention the fact that the sight of the empty room nearly made her ring the alarm before realising he might be down in his office. 

Daniel shrugged again. 

"Wasn't tired. Felt kind of bored sitting in that room." 

_Bored and freaked out when the room began to lose its air, its light. That's all._

If Janet suspected there was more to it than that, she didn't say. Instead, she looked around the room. 

"It's like a museum in here," the woman remarked. 

Daniel just shrugged again. Mentally sighing, Janet pulled out the glasses she found left on the bedside table, holding them out to him. 

"Thought you might want these." 

Daniel stared at them impassively. 

"Might help you see better," Janet suggested. 

"To see what ?" Daniel asked dully. 

"I don't know," Janet said lightly. "Some magazines, a book. I could get you something to read if you're that bored." 

_Maybe a file or two_ , Janet added to herself. She moved the glasses closer when Daniel didn't reach for them. She gently placed them over his face, resting the frame on the bridge of his nose. 

_It slipped over his eyes like a second skin and despite its metallic design, was a lot lighter than he had first thought. But it was only a thought because the jolt of shock that raced through the visor, into his temples made him jerk in pain._

_It became the only thought in his mind._

_The pain._

_Had he ever known anything else besides it ?_

_Was there anything else ?_

_Another jolt and he screamed, forgetting why he wasn't supposed to before. Forgetting that he had an audience. That he was supposed to fight this._

_Another jolt._

_Another scream._

_He was losing._

_The question was asked again. The hand stroked damp strands of hair as it did. And he shook his head._

_Another._

_He shook his head._

_Another._

_The visor was tainted gold and silver, hugging the sides of his head tight until his eyes squeezed such from the discomfort, but he still saw his prison clearly in its dull stone gray and tempered rust hues on the floor._

_Another._

_The walls were turning red now._

_The floors vanished._

_Another._

_His arms, hung up and forward, were turning to black. They were turning to stone, unmoving, frozen to that very spot..._

_Another._

_"God !" That word came through clearly._

_"Do you see him standing there ?" the voice asked. "Do you see him watching this and doing nothing ?"_

_Another._

_"He is not the one you know any more."_

_Colors. They're all changing. They're melting away, blending in front of him._

_"He orders the pain for you."_

_Red. It's mostly red now. Like blood, like water, spreading to the floors, oozing towards him with hungry appendages waving towards his chained ankles._

_"He deserves to die."_

_Concentrate on the colors. Just look at the red coming closer. Just look at it making its way up my legs, devouring every bit of sensitive flesh, the pain disappearing with it._

_"You will say yes."_

_Just look at the colors._

_Another._

_All the colors vanished in a blink, into a screaming blast of white light that seemed to explode from behind his eyes._

_"Yes or no ?"_

_"Y... yes..."_

Daniel jerked back, one hand coming up to slap Janet's hand away. His glasses were wrenched free from his face by the blow and fell to the floor with barely a sound. Daniel found himself skidding back on his chair a few inches before finally realizing that the room wasn't dark and that he was no longer chained to anything. 

Janet stared at her friend with shock, watching as the wave of emotions crossed his face and fled so quickly that she thought she was mistaken. But the telltale tremble of his long fingers told her otherwise. 

"Are you okay ?" 

"Sorry," Daniel mumbled, ducking his head. "You startled me." 

Janet knew she did no such thing but she didn't correct him as she bent over and picked up the glasses again. Silently, she offered them to Daniel again. This time, the young man accepted them, folding them neatly on top of the keyboard. 

"So... ready to go back, yet ?" Janet asked softly. Daniel stared at his glasses. "Maybe we could wander down to the cafeteria and grab a bite to eat." 

Daniel ignored her question. 

"How long ?" 

Fraiser blinked. 

"Huh ?" 

The young man looked up with wide eyes. 

"How long before they return ?" 

"Twenty four hours, Daniel." 

"Twenty four," Daniel repeated dully. "So... Jack's going to be back..." 

"Tomorrow evening," Janet finished. She eyed Daniel fingering the keyboard. "You don't look too thrilled about that." 

Daniel looked up sharply. 

"What are you talking about ?" 

"I mean... you seem... anxious," the doctor commented. 

Something seemed to shut down in Daniel's eyes. 

"I'm just concerned... about them going back there." 

"You don't want them to go help General Carter ?" 

"No !" Daniel shot to his feet. "That's not what I mean ! I..." 

"I think you're more worried about when they come back," Janet continued softly. "About who you'll see when they come back." 

Daniel stopped in front of his bookcase, listlessly running a finger across the edge of one of the shelves. 

"You don't want to talk to Jack ?" 

Shaking his head, Daniel didn't reply as he picked up a picture of himself, sitting on a camel, the pyramids behind him. He was so young then. The picture was almost ten years old. It felt so far away. And the person in the picture was a virtual stranger to him. It was disconcerting. The face he looked at often, recognizing as his own, was an unknown to him now. 

So who was he now ? 

"Daniel ?" 

Blinking, to his chagrin, he realized that his eyes were brimming with unshed tears. Pretending to cough, he brought his hand up to cover his mouth, covertly thumbing away the embarrassing moisture. 

"Daniel ?" Janet was behind him now. She eyed the picture over his shoulder. "That's you ?" 

Daniel nodded numbly. 

Janet chuckled softly. 

"That camel... how can you even sit on top of those creatures ?" She pretended to shudder. "They're higher than a horse !" 

"They're actually okay. If you think they're big, you should have seen the mastadges back on Abydos-" Daniel stopped. Abruptly, he set the picture back down on the shelf a little too hard and the rest of his stuff jumped. 

"Daniel-" 

"I have to remember, don't I ?" 

The young man's back was still to Janet as he leaned forward and rested his forehead on the edge of the shelf, paying no mind to the dust there. 

Janet paused. 

"I mean... Jack said I needed to remember..." Daniel took a deep breath, turning around finally. His hands waved slightly in the air in a weak gesture, a pale imitation of what he used to do. "I... I might know things, but I can't seem to remember anything at all." 

_Liar_ , Janet thought but she didn't say this out loud as she gently took him by the elbow and guided him back to the chair. Daniel didn't resist as he sat down again. He looked sleepy, but as though he were struggling very hard to stay awake. 

"Daniel... this isn't just about information, about what you might know. It's about you finding out what exactly happened-" 

"S-smith... and Tesh," Daniel blurted out. "They went back, didn't they ?" 

Nodding, Janet opened her mouth to say something when Daniel looked down to his lap, fiddling with the ends of the robe's ties. 

"I'm sorry." 

"What ?" Janet leaned forward, taking his hands in between hers. She rubbed them together, dismayed at how cold they were. "What's there to be sorry about ? Daniel ?" 

"I'm sorry," Daniel mumbled again, his shoulders slumping a little. 

Janet couldn't think of anything to do. His hands felt so chilled yet he wasn't shivering. Her heart ached and suddenly she realized how Jack must have felt. How hard it was to push when the man before them was getting smaller and smaller, further and further away. 

"I-I'm sorry," Daniel whispered, his voice fading away as fatigue pulled him down to sleep. 

She didn't know how to respond. Janet had never felt so helpless as she was now. Watching Daniel made her painfully aware of how little she could do, how little had been done and how much more there was to do. It felt like a battle they were already losing, but she yearned to do something, anything to ease her friend's pain. 

Janet hooked one hand over the back of Daniel's neck, pulling him forward. The man didn't resist, too tired to even realize what she was doing. Fraiser positioned herself, letting his forehead rest on her shoulder. She moved her hands, one to cup the back of his head, the other on the small of his back and Daniel still didn't resist. Instead, he seemed to slump forward. 

"...s-sorry." 

"It's okay," Janet murmured, her own eyes now moist. "It's okay."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Original note:   
> This is for Judy..who sent an extra chapter on that great fic Windows and Walls and bringing a very devious potential new female enemy. *eg* Hmmm.....  
> This is also for Graculus again. *eg* Girl, you are a FAST beta!


	5. Chapter 5

_I never thought I would have to see this place again_ , Jack thought as he eyed the hanging chains. 

He grimaced as he heard Teal'c haul the last of the bodies away. They had come into a land of chaos, the guards they had killed were still there for them to find. Any rage Jack had felt when he first busted in here was gone - the sight of the bodies left him with a bad taste in his mouth. 

_The cell reeked of decay and sweat, it's stone walls barely muffling the sounds of the screaming and begging of the other cellmates._

_Stop it_ , Jack told himself sternly. _Focus here, damn you._ The colonel rubbed his eyes and stared hard around the room once more. 

"O'Neill." Teal'c entered the large chamber. "I have put them in one of the empty cells." 

The colonel nodded. He flicked on his radio. "Carter, how're things going on your side?" 

"Okay, sir. Smith and Tesh are checking out the cells right now." Carter paused. "But I don't see anything that would indicate another complex or... if they have my..." She didn't finish. 

Jack looked at the radio sympathetically, understanding what Carter was going through. "We'll find him, Major." 

"Thank you, sir." And the radio fell silent. 

"O'Neill." 

Turning around, Jack saw a frown on the Jaafa's face. "What is it ?" 

"This smell." Teal'c waved a hand across the room. "It is quite familiar." 

Jack darkened. He knew the smell too. The iron-tainted stench was evident even before they had entered the room. 

"It's the smell of pain, Teal'c." 

The Jaafa shook his head. "No, there is something else, O'Neill." 

How Teal'c could even ignore the horrific scent long enough to find another Jack would never know. All he could smell was the blood and sweat that seemed to linger even after so long a time. 

"Nimertha," Teal'c said suddenly. 

Jack turned sharply towards him. "You can smell it here ?" The Jaafa nodded. 

"It is very strong. There was once a large quantity here." 

"Daniel and the others," Jack murmured. He pounded a fist into his other hand. "Dammit ! We don't really know what they were trying to do here !" 

"To kill you," Teal'c reminded Jack, as if he was mentioning a forgotten appointment. 

Jack grinned crookedly. "Not that I'm not flattered or anything, but surely there must have been other reasons besides that. I mean, whoever did this must have known that such an attempt would be difficult." 

"They were tricked into believing you had failed them," Teal'c said, recalling the reports, the testimonies from the soldiers once they had woken up. 

"By whom ?" 

Teal'c had no answer to that one. 

"You have many enemies, Colonel O'Neill," Tery'ka said, emerging from the back of the room. Jack jumped. 

"Shit ! Where the hell did you come from ?" Jack barked, lowering his rifle. The Tok'ra did not even blink at the sight of the weapon drawn on him. 

"There are many tunnels here that we have yet to uncover." 

Jack glared at Tery'ka. "Did you find any sign of-" 

"No." The To'kra looked over his shoulder, back to the newly revealed passage. "I have not seen this one before." 

"Great," Jack muttered. "We'd better check out this tunnel you popped out of. Carter's got the east wing covered." 

"This way," Tery'ka said, turning back quickly towards the tunnel he had come from. 

Jack cursed as the Tok'ra disappeared from his sight too quickly and hurried to catch him up. That nagging feeling he had earlier was now screaming in his ears as he went further and further into the darkness with Teal'c in tow. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

_Tesh spat out the remaining liquid with a grimace. "I've tasted rations better than this shit, John."_

_Stone shrugged, wincing as his shoulder protested. "They're feeding us. Obviously they want us alive."_

_"But I guess no one said anything about the condition we have to be in," Smith muttered, massaging his forearm where he had tied part of his shirt to stop the bleeding._

_Sanders groaned as he sat up with Stone's help. "Smith ? Tesh ?"_

_"Here, sir."_

_"Over here."_

_"Where's Jackson ?" Sanders glanced around the dim, cramped cell they were now occupying, his brown eyes turning black with concern._

_"I saw him earlier, in the chamber," Smith murmured._

_Tesh scowled as he eyed the hallways through the small cell window. "They must have him in another room, sir. He hasn't been with us at all."_

_"I don't think they even placed him in a cell," Stone said as he rubbed his leg tiredly, trying to force some circulation back into it. "They've been using us to get to him."_

_The others nodded._

_Tesh abruptly banged his fist on the ground._

_"Dammit !"_

_"Easy, lieutenant," Sanders muttered as he tried to get up. He waved off Smith's offer to help. The Major perked up when he heard footsteps._

_"Sir." As he spoke, Stone pulled out a metal rod from his sleeve._

_Sanders was surprised. "Where the hell did you get that ?"_

_"When they were busy with their... hospitality, sir." Stone grinned dryly. "When I fell down, I felt one of those under my leg and grabbed it before they could haul me out of there."_

_"You never lost consciousness ?" Tesh asked, back against the door as he eyed the window. Silently, he held up two fingers, then pointed to the left of the door._

_"No. Why ?"_

_"I always wake up back here," Smith said, looking over at Stone, with a puzzled expression._

_"Same here," Sanders muttered as he slipped over to the other side of the door. He mouthed "How far ?" to Tesh._

_"Lost consciousness each time," Tesh said as he pointed five fingers, indicating five meters. The others tensed._

_"So I have a higher threshold for pain ?" Stone remarked dryly. "Lucky me." He crouched down low, behind Tesh's knees, readying the thin metallic rod._

_"Would explain why you always do better than me in the physical," Smith joked as he kneeled down next to him. He eyed the rod and realized that there was blood on it already. He looked away. Sanders placed a finger over his lips and the men fell silent._

_At the sound of the bar sliding across, the door moving to swing open, SG-5 leaned back into the shadows._

_A guard exclaimed something in his language when the four prone forms he had expected to find on the floor were gone. But, as he turned around to alert the others, Stone lashed out with the bar, catching him in the vulnerable spot behind the knees. The guard fell backwards, which brought the attention of the other, who whipped his staff weapon forward, the head blossoming open with crackling sparks._

_Before it could fire Sanders, on the other side, taking advantage of the confusion, grabbed it just below the head and yanked hard, giving enough momentum for the guard to lurch forward so Stone could slam the rod down behind the guard's neck._

_Smith and Tesh grabbed the staff weapons immediately as Stone stripped the fallen guards of their armor, tossing them into a dark corner at the back of the cell. Sanders peered down the hallway and noted that no one else was coming down to their cell. He nodded to the others as he caught the staff weapon. Stone nodded as he found long daggers that were sheathed in the guards' metallic boots. He passed one to Tesh, keeping the other for himself._

_"No zats ?" Stone asked surprised, remembering the blast he took when he was with Jackson._

_"No," Smith reported as he grabbed the staff weapon. "All clear, sir."_

_"Stone, you and Tesh, get Jackson. Smith, follow me. Come on." Sanders darted out of the cell fast, hissing for the others to go. Smith closed the door behind them. Hopefully at first glance, it would like them on the ground if the room were glanced at briefly._

_"Sir !" Tesh shouted a warning just as he caught the sight of a guard turning the corner behind Sanders._

_The Major whipped around and saw the staff weapon spark to life. Tesh shouted, pulling out the dagger and sent it sailing down the hallway. It met its target in the guard's chest, the sharp tip slicing through the metal chain armor like paper. The Jaafa barely made a sound as he fell forward to the ground._

_"I owe you a beer," Sanders said as he limped over to the guard, tossing his man the staff weapon._

_"Don't drink," Tesh said shortly, looking down to the other end of the hallway worriedly. He hadn't heard from Smith and Stone for a while. "Sir, should we-"_

_A blast from the distance rocked the hallway, throwing the men off balance. As Tesh looked up, he saw Smith running bellowing towards them, Stone nowhere to be found. But the soldier couldn't understand what his comrade was saying as the whine of staff weapons grew louder. Sanders, pinned to the corner, fired his confiscated weapon down the passage._

_"Where's Stone ? Where's Doctor Jackson ?" Sanders roared above the din._

_"He got in to that chamber when I got cut off, sir !" Smith said as soon as he reached them._

_"You and Tesh get them out here," Sanders said as he fired off a shot above the guards and noted with grim satisfaction that the stones up there caved in. He could hear the strangled, choked off cries of the enemy._

_Smith nodded and staggered off with Tesh to the end of the hallway. All aches and agonies seem to have fled with the arrival of the adrenaline rush of battle. He spurred on until he reached the doorway of the chamber. He thought he saw a shadow down one end of the room but when he got to the center of the room and looked again, it wasn't there so he thought he was mistaken._

_"John !" Tesh hauled the man up. Stone groaned and feebly tried to help the process, only to fall back down on his knees again. "What the hell happened ?"_

_"Got Jackson out of them chains." He pointed to the slumped figure on the floor. "But someone came from behind me and-" Stone groaned, moving a hand to the back of his head._

_"Doctor Jackson," Smith whispered anxiously, sitting the limp figure up. Jackson moaned softly but didn't awaken at his name. "Damn, he's too far gone. We're gonna have to carry him-"_

_"There will be no need, Tau'ri." The three soldiers whipped around and froze. Sanders stood there, fury on his face as he was forced to raise his hands, the staff weapon on his back prodding him to go inside. "Drop your weapons or your comrade will perish."_

_There was really no choice. Three weapons dropped to the floor with a resounding clang._

"We escaped," Smith said abruptly, as he stood in the cell in which they had once been held. 

Carter blinked. "What ?" 

Tesh nodded as he glanced around the room, his eyes drifting over to a spot by the door. "I think I know what you're talking about. I remember... standing over there... we managed to get out and..." 

"Doctor Jackson," Smith said. 

"What about him ?" The Major asked anxiously. 

"We got him out of his chains but they stopped us before we could get out." 

"Damn," Tesh muttered. 

"Wait." Smith looked up again, snapping his fingers. "When I got to the chamber, Stone... he had gone to get Jackson but we found him half dazed." 

"He collapsed ?" 

Tesh shook his head. "No. He said someone came from behind him, but I didn't see anyone else there-" 

"I did," Stone interrupted. "Or... at least, I thought I did, but when I got closer, all it was there was a damn wall." 

"Secret passage ?" Carter suggested. The two soldiers looked at each other. 

"Could be..." Smith chewed his lower lip. "That could be it." 

"I better let the colonel know about this," Carter said, whipping out her radio once more. Glancing around the cell, trying to ignore the smells that stubbornly clung to the place, she suppressed a shudder. "Colonel O'Neill, this is Carter." The radio crackled once. 

She looked at the others worriedly. "Sir ? Can you read me ?" Nothing but silence. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Johnson grimaced as the sky turned slightly sea green, a sight that was unusually nice, but also acted as a reminder that they weren't back home on Earth. It made nightfall a bit disconcerting. 

"Sir." Anderson jogged up to him, from behind one cluster of trees. "It's been eight hours. Should we do the radio check as planned ?" 

The CO nodded at the reminder and pulled out his radio. Colonel O'Neill had reported in four hours ago and as determined, they were due for a report back any time now. 

"Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3, radio your ten." The radio was silent. 

"Tomes, is our antenna up ?" Johnson asked. 

The soldier looked up with surprise. "Yes, sir." 

"Sir-" Anderson started worriedly but Johnson lifted a hand up stopping them. 

"They could be busy at the moment and can't respond," Johnson muttered as he tried again. "SG-1, anyone please respond." 

Nothing. 

"Damn," Johnson muttered as he looked at his men with a frown. Booker and Tomes was already standing up expectantly, waiting for orders. Johnson gave it one more try. "SG-1, this is SG-3, what is your status ?" 

"Major Johnson." 

The soldiers, as one, turned around with their weapons up. The trees rustled, revealing that someone was there. 

"Show yourself !" Johnson barked as he motioned his men to stay behind the trees. 

Tery'ka emerged from the shadows, standing there stiffly. 

"Tery'ka-" Johnson frowned. "What the hell ? What are you doing here ? Where's Colonel O'Neill and the rest of his team ?" 

"Your radios would no longer work inside," Tery'ka said as he handed over one of the radios. "Perhaps something inside the complex is preventing contact." 

"Where's Colonel O'Neill ?" Johnson repeated. 

"He accidentally tripped one of their defense mechanisms and disappeared. Your Jaafa Teal'c tried to grab your comrade but was pulled in as well." 

"What ?" Anderson blurted out. 

"Why are you here then ?" Johnson asked, suspiciously. 

"Your Major Carter stayed behind to try and find the entrance way. She asked that I return to try and talk to Doctor Jackson once more." 

The team looked at each other. 

"We have our orders to stay here and guard the Stargate for their return," Johnson said slowly. Tery'ka shook his head. 

"Smith and Tesh said only Doctor Jackson would know the way in to find Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c. They recall the guards taking him there many times." 

"Sir-" Booker began, as he exchanged a look with Anderson. "One of us could accompany him back home and get Jackson." 

Johnson nodded, but his face looked like he didn't like the idea one bit. 

"Fine. Anderson, you go with Tery'ka and report to General Hammond. We have no choice but to stay here. There's not enough men to risk the chance of splitting into two teams." 

Anderson nodded as he retrieved his GDO. The To'kra stood there waiting. 

"Have you guys found General Carter ?" Johnson asked as they started heading back for the Stargate. 

"There was no sign of him. I fear the worst may have happened to him." With that, Tery'ka's eyes glowed. "We will return shortly with Doctor Jackson and with his help, we will discover their fates." He then bowed his head slightly and left with Anderson. 

The rest of SG-3 watched as Anderson punched in the coordinates. The Stargate flashed once, let them through and blinked out. 

"Why don't I feel very reassured about that ?" Johnson muttered as he turned away once more. He glanced over to Tomes. "Try again." 

"Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3. Do you read me ? Colonel O'Neill, this is SG-3, what is your status ?" 

\--------------------------- 

Janet understood why Daniel went down to his office instead of staying in his room. 

_You would try and find a place to hide too, if they kept coming in here with this kind of news._

The doctor blinked as General Hammond stood, in Daniel's office, telling them about Jack. She glanced over to the young man. Daniel just sat there, having woken when the alarms sounded at Tery'ka's return. He had woken with a jerk, lurching back away from Janet when he realized he was leaning on her. 

Now he sat backwards on his chair, listening to General Hammond tell him about Tery'ka's return and the news he carried, while clutching white knuckled at the back of his chair, his eyes shadowed. Only Daniel knew what was going on in his mind. Janet couldn't read his face. It looked as though it was carved from stone, the eyes hidden and dark, the lips a thin line in the face. 

It looked like Jack. 

"Doctor Jackson ?" Hammond called again softly. 

"I... I have to go back." The voice was dull, emotionless. "He's right. I'm probably the only one who knows where Jack and Teal'c may be." 

"You could just tell us and we'll-" 

Daniel gave a funny laugh, not looking at the General. "That would be the easy way, wouldn't it ?" 

"Daniel-" Janet leaned forward and placed a hand on his shoulder. The young man shrugged it off. 

"I don't remember, sir," the scientist said quietly. "If I did... if I did, I would have told you sooner. This wouldn't have happened-" 

"Daniel..." the doctor tried to interrupt before he could continue but Daniel waved a hand sharply towards her. 

"This shouldn't have happened !" Daniel got to his feet. "They wouldn't have been wandering around if I..." 

Daniel stopped. The General and the doctor exchanged a concerned look. With a sigh, Jackson looked up at Hammond, his hands absently brushing back invisible lint from his robe. 

"Permission to go through the Stargate, General Hammond." 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Carter stared at the chamber in disbelief. The place looked exactly the same as when she had left the colonel and the others there earlier. The torches were still lit, casting dancing shadows on dingy stone walls. The chains were still swaying slightly from a breeze coming from somewhere. The three walls were still slimy looking, the ground still filthy. Only one difference. 

It was empty. No one was there. 

"Where's Colonel O'Neill ?" Smith muttered as he looked around uneasily. Tesh grunted, stating that he didn't know. He veered away from the all too familiar chains on the walls, making a face at the smell once more. 

Sam turned to the Lieutenant. "Where did you see this tunnel ?" 

"I'm not even sure." Smith hesitated, his eyes studying the chamber warily. 

"Try !" The Major demanded. She sighed when she realized how sharp that must have sounded. "Please. What do you remember ?" 

Smith crossed his arms, lowering his head as he concentrated. The corner of his mouth twitched as a memory flitted through his mind. He stood there silently, ignoring everything around him as he tried to recall. Suddenly, he looked up, zeroing in on the end of the room. 

"There." The man trotted over to the wall on the far corner, all the way to the back of the chamber. He stopped in front of the wall and snorted, frustrated. "Damn." 

"I don't see anything to open, Smith," Tesh murmured as he brushed his hand across the cold surface. 

Sam banged at the wall with the butt of her rifle. Then she tried again, striking another part. When the sound was deeper, she turned to Smith and Tesh. The two nodded. There was definitely another passage behind the wall. 

"Blow it ?" Tesh suggested as Carter frowned. 

"I don't know if it's going to bring the whole place down or not." She looked uneasily at the ceiling and looked back down quickly as her eyes caught a glimpse of the chains above their heads. 

"How about a good zat ?" Smith grinned, pulling out the tri-folded weapon issued for the team. Carter grinned in response. 

"Be my guest," she quipped as she and Tesh backed away. Smith gave a thumbs up, took a step back himself and aimed. 

With one shot, the sparks danced around the wall, travelling in an odd shape, seeping through the outlines of a doorway they couldn't see. Then Smith fired another shot and paused, watching the energy discharge dance around the edges once more. 

"Good for you, Tom," Tesh said wryly, wondering why his friend had stopped. "It's now dead." 

Smith glared at his comrade but said nothing as he fired the third shot. The wall flashed once and was gone. 

"Ladies first ?" Smith said with a grin, waving towards the open entrance. Smiling back, Sam gave a salute before entering. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

_You know what to do._

Daniel paused, unsure if that was himself or another voice he had yet to identify. He stared at the empty locker, his hands still on the zipper of his flak jacket. 

"What am I doing ?" he muttered as he sat down on the bench. He rubbed his hands on his pants, his palms scratching against the straps of his sidearm holster. Looking at the empty holster, Daniel made a mental reminder to himself that he needed to go and get whatever they were going to issue him. His usual sidearm that Jack had issued him since the beginning was back in the armory after he was rescued from.... 

Daniel stopped, frowning at himself when he realized that he had stopped getting ready. He could almost hear his watch ticking the time away, time where Jack and Teal'c were waiting for him. 

Waiting. Like he had, wondering if they were going to find him, ever.... 

"Stop it," he hissed to himself as he felt his hands tremble. 

Daniel clenched his fists tightly, trying to stop the shakes but it seemed to only make his entire body to shudder instead, the tremors moving from his hands to wrists, making its way down to his knees until it actually began to hurt. He sat on his hands, rocking himself as he waited for the shakes to pass. His shoulders shook as they hunched over, dropping his head close to his chest. 

"Just... stop it... not now... please... not now..." 

He was so scared. 

And he didn't know why. 

_Yes you do_ , a little voice told him. _You've been through a very difficult experience and merely reacting to it. It's perfectly normal._

Daniel snorted to himself. It sounded so reasonable when he thought about it, but if said out loud, he knew what the translation of that would be. 

_Coward._

It wasn't normal. He was supposed to get past this, get back to the team who had been so incredibly patient with him. They were all waiting for him. Now. And later. 

"It'll get better," Daniel whispered, still rocking himself back and forth. "It'll get better. Just go there, get them back and move on. Just don't think about it right now. Later. Later." 

"Doctor Jackson ?" Anderson's voice was muffled, as it travelled through the locker room door. For some reason, the sergeant didn't enter the locker room, preferring to stay outside, perhaps to give him some privacy. A thoughtful gesture really, but it made Daniel flush with anger for some reason. 

"C-coming," Daniel managed to grind out, hating how his voice cracked. He steeled his jaw, stood up and flexed his hands, grateful to see the clean bandages covered the angry scars on his wrists and forearms. He rolled down his sleeves, hiding them and momentarily felt better when he no longer saw the white edges of the gauze. 

"Hurry up. Hurry up," he muttered to himself like a mantra, feeling time running away from him. 

Daniel sat down again to reach his bootlaces, tying them as fast as he could. There was no time. He couldn't dawdle here. To his dismay, his fingers were clumsy, tangling the laces into horrible knots. He gritted his teeth and untied them. 

"Doctor Jackson ?" 

"In a minute." Daniel had to stop himself from shouting. He took a deep breath, wondering why he was so upset. Anderson was only rushing him because there was no time. 

_No time. Remember that. You have to retu..._

_The hand stroke his cheek, warm breath tickling his cheek as the leader came closer._

_"Remember. Return to me and do as I command."_

_Daniel turned his head away from the voice but he couldn't shut the voice out. More and more the smooth words seem to fill his mind, tightening his chest and willing his muscles to move even when he thought he no longer had the strength to do so._

_Eyes were glowing so close to his face that he thought the fire inside those orbs would leap out and burn him. They eyed him with a hungry look, the hands wandering down to his throat, caressing the skin exposed through the torn shirt._

_"Return to me when I call."_

Daniel jerked up, gasping as he fell against the lockers in his shock. The metal surfaces clanged loudly. 

"Doctor Jackson ?" Anderson's voice sounded closer now. 

"Coming," he grated out, as he got up, clutching the locker door for support. _Not now. Later. Figure it out later. They're waiting for you. She's waiting for you._

That last thought did not even register with Daniel as he slammed the locker door too loudly and went outside to join Anderson. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Janet eyed the three men going down the hallway to the embarkation room, moving like some sort of grim procession. She stood at one end of the hall, watching them approach. She watched Daniel in particular, noting his slow steps, but was relieved to see that there was no discomfort from the movement. 

The doctor was half tempted to pull Jackson off the mission, but there was too much at stake. Three men, including O'Neill who was probably the only one who could reach the sullen looking man before her, were trapped on that planet. And it pained her to realize that Daniel was the only one, in all probability, who might be able to get them out. 

She wondered when had life become so cruel. 

Sergeant Anderson was walking very fast, but then he looked back at the men behind him and slowed a little. Janet knew, however, it wasn't for Tery'ka's benefit. 

Daniel was silent as he put on his helmet, shuffling along behind the other two. She noted that he wasn't wearing his glasses and wondered briefly about that. 

"Doctor Fraiser ?" Anderson stopped in front of her. "Is everything alright ?" 

Janet blinked, suddenly realizing how odd it must look, the base doctor seeing them off on a mission. She smiled at them, but it felt forced as she shook her head in answer to Anderson's question. 

"Just wanted to wish you good luck." She glanced over to Daniel, who was looking everywhere but in her direction. "Come back as soon as you can." 

Anderson solemnly nodded and for a moment, it looked like he was going to salute the doctor but stopped midway. He entered the opening bulk doors, only to find General Hammond was there waiting. 

"Just wanted to see you off, gentlemen," General Hammond said smoothly as the Stargate burst into sparkling light behind him. 

"Thank you, sir." 

Tery'ka acknowledged the words with a slight nod. Daniel looked up and managed a small smile, straightening up a bit as he did. He squared his shoulders as he nodded to the older man mutely. General Hammond's eyes seemed to soften a bit. 

"Hurry back, gentlemen." 

+++++++++++++++++++++ 

"Sir." Booker scrambled over to his CO, handing his binoculars. "Stargate's been activated." Tomes dropped down from the tree branch he was perched on, joining the other two. 

Johnson took the binoculars and peered into it. He grunted in surprise when he saw three figures coming through the Stargate. 

"I'll be damned," the man muttered. 

"Sir ?" 

"Jackson's with them." 

Booker and Tomes looked at each other with surprise. 

"Guess Tery'ka needed more than answers to a few questions," Johnson murmured as he whistled softly. He could see his man perk up at the signal. 

Anderson from the distance, whistled back and picked up the pace. In a few minutes, he rejoined his team, meeting with the Tok'ra and Jackson crouched down with them in the brush. 

"Doctor Jackson." Johnson studied the man with pursed lips, noting the pale face. "You okay there ?" 

"Have you heard from Jack and the others ?" Daniel asked as he looked back towards the Stargate. 

"Nothing." Johnson shook his head. "Been trying for the past two hours since Tery'ka headed back for the Stargate." 

Daniel turned towards the Tok'ra. "Can you take me there ? B-back to that place ?" 

Tery'ka nodded silently. Anderson darted his eyes between Daniel and Tery'ka. 

"Sir, should I-" 

Johnson nodded. "Accompany them back there. I want you to radio me as soon as you get word. Got it ?" 

Anderson nodded as he took another rifle. He hesitated, wondering if he should offer it to Jackson, but to his surprise, the man took it without protest. Instead, he slung the strap over his shoulder and got up. Johnson raised an eyebrow at the sight but said nothing. 

"I'm giving you five, Anderson. You see nothing, you haul ass out of there, with Doctor Jackson." 

"We can't just leave them there and-" Daniel angrily protested. 

"Five hours." Johnson stood up. "Until I hear from Colonel O'Neill himself, I'm in charge of this mission. When I say five hours, I mean five hours. Is that clear ?" 

Daniel turned around abruptly on his heel and started walking. 

"Watch him," Johnson mouthed silently to Anderson. The sergeant nodded and went after them, waving to his bunkmate Booker as he murmured good luck to him. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

"No answer." Jack snorted in disgust, banging his radio against his thigh. "Any sign of Tery'ka, Teal'c ?" 

"None," the Jaafa replied flatly. 

"Don't know how we lost him back there," Jack grumbled as he waved his flashlight back and forth. He had turned around and suddenly found the Tok'ra who was trailing behind before, had been gone. Worried, Jack backtracked and found the two tunnels they had passed were blocked off. 

Jack gnashed his teeth, glaring at the monotonous walls, trying to see if there was anything different about them. They all looked the same, however. Dark, black and slimy. 

_And I thought seeing trees on every planet was bad._

"You see anything, Teal'c ?" Jack murmured as he tapped the stones with the butt of his rifle. 

"I do not." Teal'c circled the column that stood in the middle of the tunnel. "O'Neill." 

"What ?" 

"This pillar contains vibrations." Placing his palm flat on the surface, Teal'c nodded when he detected the small waves of shock running through stone. 

"I don't hear anything." Jack frowned as he tapped the stone. It didn't sound any different from the other walls. "What do you think it is ?" 

"An engine of some kind." 

"Goa'uld ?" the colonel asked, eyeing the column warily. He motioned Teal'c to back away from it. 

"Perhaps." 

Jack swore softly when he heard a low-pitched whine growing from under their feet. He couldn't tell where it was coming from specifically but apparently, Teal'c knew what it was. 

"O'Neill !" the Jaafa shouted, grabbing him roughly by the arm. With a quick yank, Jack found himself pulled back. Stumbling back, Jack didn't need to ask Teal'c about his reasons when he saw three rings rise up from the ground. One by one, they hovered on top of each other, the light shining up like a huge beam. 

Someone was coming. 

"Back that way !" Jack hissed as they backtracked their steps, ducking into a corner, trying to blend with the shadows there. 

The light streamed upward and slowly, five figures materialized. Jack felt his breath slam against his ribs when he saw the slight figure standing arrogantly in the middle of the circle of guards. The light from the beam had not faded yet and it gleamed on the amber jewel covering her smooth white belly, the gold bracelets that wrapped around her arms like coiled snakes. As the last of the beam's energy faded, Jack got a good look at the glowing eyes. 

Hathor. 

\------------------------- 

Jack was beginning to think he was going to need some sort of warranty. Something that would read "All deaths are non-refundable and not returnable. Once dead, stays dead." He scowled. 

_If only it was that easy._

Obviously, Hathor was a lot harder to get rid of than he thought. 

_The colonel could still feel the cold from the cryogenic chamber seeping into his skin, into his joints as he tightened his hold around Hathor's neck, thinking how nice it would be to hear it snap._

_She screamed, twisting in his iron grip. Carter was crumpled senseless from her ribbon device, lying at her feet. He tightened his grip around the Goa'uld._

_She was fighting furiously and it took all he had left to not let go despite his numb limbs. His strength was spurred by the memories of what she had done, what she had put them through. The idea that she had placed one of her Goa'uld larvaeinside of him made his insides twist and his arm tightened further._

_"We will destroy you for this !"_

_"We," Jack snarled harshly as he dragged her kicking and screaming to the pit of smoking cryogenic liquid, "would just like you to **go away** !" _

_With strength Jack didn't even know he had left, the colonel gave a hard push at the Goa'uld Queen that nearly toppled him over the railing too. Jack shoved Hathor over, into the steamy water. He knew Hathor would freeze in the absolute zero temperatures of the liquid that she had placed them in before, in those damn claustrophobic tubes._

_But he hoped that she would burn in hell._

"Jaafa kree !" Hathor commanded, her eyes glowing as she scanned the area. Jack and Teal'c tensed, pressing their backs further against the walls. 

_There's that yoo hoo thing again_ , Jack thought, remembering how Daniel had explained the meaning of the word "kree". He.... 

Daniel. 

She had had him here, in her clutches. For three goddamn days. Every one of those scars, every bruise, every nightmare, was because of her. 

It took all of Jack's restraint to not rush out there and empty every single bullet he had in his rifle into her body. 

"Thekla yiu Tok'ra net shouik !" Hathor waved her hand towards a wall, revealing the gem nestled in her palm. The ribbon device flashed once and the wall rose up like a panel, revealing another tunnel. 

Jack stiffened at the only word he understood - Tok'ra. Did she mean General Carter ? Or maybe the missing Tery'ka ? He glanced over at Teal'c, hiding in an alcove opposite of him. 

The Jaafa's eyes were dark, the darkest the colonel had ever seen and he knew. He knew that murder was on his comrade's mind. Jack understood it completely and wished he could indulge in that sin for now, to even the odds, to avenge. But he needed to stay alive. 

There was someone waiting for him back home. Someone he needed to help. 

A soft chime caught Hathor's attention and Jack turned back to the group they were hiding from. The Queen smiled as she slipped her hand within the folds of her robe, pulling out a palm sized clear globe. The crystal warmed with the contact of her flesh, fogging up into a milky white sphere. Jack couldn't see what was showing in this globe, but Hathor seemed to be displeased with the image it revealed. 

"Shkare Tau'ri !" Hathor hissed towards the crystal in her hand. 

A voice, surprisingly loud considering the source it was coming from, boomed out in his defense. 

"Tau'ri nyet Jackson thelk shamre Hathor." 

Jack didn't understand the conversation, but his eyes darkened at the mention of the name Jackson. Why was he mentioned ? Daniel wasn't here. The colonel looked over towards Teal'c, wishing he could dare ask the Jaafa for a translation, but judging by the frown, the fists clenching the staff weapon, Jack doubted that he would enjoy the answer very much. 

Hathor seemed to be content with the report and she smiled. The smile itself was not at all pleasing - instead, it sent shivers up and down Jack's spine. 

"Thel skaha O'Neill," Hathor whispered, caressing the globe now as the smoke cleared from it. She laughed softly as she pocketed the sphere once more. With a wave of her hand, she motioned her guards to follow her out into the newly revealed tunnel. Moments later, Jack and Teal'c were left alone again. 

Jack emerged from his hiding place, glancing in the direction Hathor had gone, scowling after her, wishing he could follow. But his anger alone would not be enough to go against one Goa'uld Queen and her five Jaafa guards. 

"O'Neill." Teal'c's voice was low, but the apprehension was clear in his voice. 

"You understood what she was saying, Teal'c ?" Jack asked needlessly. "I didn't get a good look at who she was talking to. Did you ?" 

"I did not, but I heard enough to understand what she was talking about." The Jaafa's voice deepened with barely suppressed anger. "Someone has informed her that Daniel Jackson is here." 

"What ?" the colonel hissed. "Daniel's here ? How the hell did that happen ?" 

Teal'c shook his head. "The man who serves her did not say. All was mentioned that the Tok'ra needed to be found and Daniel Jackson was here." He paused. 

The colonel eyed Teal'c carefully. "What ? Is there something else ?" Jack stopped. He remembered hearing his name mentioned. "Is it about me ?" 

Nodding, Teal'c continued. "Hathor commanded that you were to be brought back alive." 

Jack frowned. "Well, at least she didn't want me dead." The colonel paused, grimacing as he concluded. "But somehow, that doesn't make me feel any better." 

"We must warn Daniel Jackson." 

"Then find out what the hell is going on here..." Jack muttered as he readjusted his hold on his weapon. **Daniel, you'd better be okay.** He nodded curtly towards the Jaafa and the two proceeded through the newly opened tunnel in hopes of beating Hathor to their teammate. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Doctor Fraiser stopped and rubbed her eyes wearily. Frowning at what she saw, she walked over to the infirmary bed, her hands on her hips. 

"Major Sanders, you should be in bed." 

"I feel fine," the man said stubbornly, shifting in his chair as he looked over to Stone. "Heard Smith and Tesh went back to that place." The large man's lips curled into a disapproving frown. "I also heard Doctor Jackson went back." 

"Colonel O'Neill and Teal'c appeared to have been caught in some tunnel and unable to find a way out. Doctor Jackson's there to find the best possible route-" 

"I thought they said he didn't remember anything," Sanders muttered as he sat there stubbornly by his comrade's side. 

Janet sighed. 

_Why do all COs seem so sure that they are immune to exhaustion and just plant themselves on the nearest chair they can find ?_

"He still doesn't... not really... but your men said that Daniel was the only one who would remember-" 

"I'm sorry, Doc," Sanders interrupted. "I just don't see how's that possible if my men don't remember that much themselves." He shrugged. "I read the reports." 

"The trip back must have jogged their memory," Janet suggested and Sanders made a face. 

"Lucky them." He paused. "You could have sent me back too, you know. Maybe I-" 

"Unlike them, who had the nimertha to heal their wounds, you have to do it the old fashioned way," Janet said gently. 

Sanders began to protest, but froze when he heard Stone groan. Janet immediately turned her attentions to her other patient. 

"Stone ?" Sanders leaned forward. "Hey." 

"H-hey..." 

"Don't talk," the doctor ordered as she pulled out her stethoscope, her eyes glued to the monitors for readings. 

"Too l-late..." Stone weakly quipped as he turned to Sanders. "Sir ? So we got out okay ?" 

"What ?" Sanders' brow furrowed. 

"The escape... I don't remember much... last I recall... you told me to get Jackson out..." 

The Major frowned. "I'm afraid I don't remember much of that mission, Stone." 

"Saw Jackson... as soon as I got into that damn room..." Stone groaned as he felt his wounds twinge. Janet came forward anxiously but he shook his head. "I'm okay..." 

Sanders told him in a quiet voice. "Colonel O'Neill and SG-3 were sent back on retrieval to get-" 

"General Carter," Stone finished it for his CO. Sanders started in surprise. 

"How-" 

"I... I remember most of the stuff... I think... that stuff they kept feeding me didn't work... sometimes... can hear what they're saying... when t-they think I was out... she said something about the zat gun..." Stone blinked his eyes sleepily. "And saw her talking with that other Go'uald a lot. Doctor Jackson one time called him Jack. I guess... that shit makes you think stuff that's not there, sir." 

"Just call me Tim, John," Sanders said gruffly. "I'm in no mood for salutes right now." 

"John..." Janet's voice was gentle. "What other Go'uald ?" 

"Don't know... long gray hair... tied back... kinda old..." Stone looked around again. "Where's the others ? And Jackson ? H-he okay ?" 

"Jackson went back with Smith and Tesh. They were needed back on that planet to find a way to help Colonel O'Neill-" 

"W-wait..." Stone struggled to sit up until the doctor stopped him. 

"Damn it, John. Stay put !" The Major's words stilled him when Janet's hands couldn't. "Calm down !" 

"N-no... you don't understand..." Stone said weakly. 

"We know about Smith and Tesh being programmed to kill Colonel O'Neill," Janet interrupted, trying to put him at ease. "But the poison is gone from their systems-" 

"No good. Saw that... device.... placed on his face..." Stone was wheezing now. "I think... that shit was a diversion... she used that device to make him believe what she says... he's going to kill Colonel O'Neill anyway... and the others..." 

"Who ?" Sanders demanded, leaning closer to his friend. He hovered over Stone as Janet tried to calm him down. "John. Who ?" 

The soldier whispered the name to Sanders before succumbing to his fatigue. As Sanders backed away, his face was pale and he swallowed hard. 

"Major ?" Janet asked, worriedly. 

"Call..." Sanders swallowed again. He looked shaken. "Call them back." 

"Major ?" 

"Get them back over here... before it's too late." 

+++++++++++++++++++++ 

_Return to me._

"Doctor Jackson ?" 

_It's so hot here._

Daniel looked up at the mid-day sun, realizing that it had reached the half mark of the thirty-hour day. In a few more hours the other sun would rise to its highest point and then it would be nightfall in seven hours. 

_Return to me._

He had to find them. He had to find her. 

_Return to me._

It was getting harder and harder to think. 

_Remember what you said you would do._

_Stop it. Stop this right now, Jackson. You have to pull yourself together. Stop thinking about it._

There wasn't enough time. 

Daniel blearily looked up, realizing that they were almost there. 

For some reason, he was very cold now. Daniel pulled his jacket closer with one hand, trying to seal in the heat. Why was he cold ? It must be over eighty degrees out here right now. 

"Doctor Jackson ?" 

A hand tapped him on the shoulder. Startled, Daniel whipped his hands out, almost knocking into Anderson. The Sergeant looked surprised but managed to sidestep the blow, drawing up his hands to show that he was no threat. 

"Hey, easy. It's just me, Jackson." Anderson waved his hands around. 

Daniel blinked, opening his mouth to make an apology. "Uh..." He turned quickly around instead, at a lost for words. 

The soldier glanced back at Tery'ka, who was silently trailing behind them, his eyes glued to Jackson's back. He frowned a little, wondering why the alien was lagging behind. At times he was even stopping by trees, explaining that he was tired. The Sergeant puzzled over the claim. He had thought the worm inside them was supposed to make them stronger but apparently he had thought wrong. Anderson, turning back towards Jackson, decided to become the shrink of the group. Shrugging, he trotted closer to the scientist. 

"No big deal. It's okay, Doc," Anderson whispered, eyes constantly tracking the path, making sure that there was nobody else following them. "I can understand why you would feel uneasy. I mean, considering-" 

Daniel stopped in his tracks, turning around suddenly. Anderson stopped mid-sentence, his eyes wide with puzzlement. 

"I'm sorry," Daniel grated out, "but I really **really** don't feel like talking about this right now." 

Anderson looked abashed. "Hey, sor-" 

"Fine," the young man said shortly and faced forward again. 

_Just keep going_ , Daniel thought to himself. _It'll be over soon._

The soldier shrugged again and slowed down a bit to let the Tok'ra catch up. He turned around, about to ask the man if they were close to the place when he skidded to a halt. 

"Where's Tery'ka ?" Anderson asked abruptly, whipping around when he realized that the Tok'ra was no longer trailing behind them. Daniel stopped too, looking around. It was only him and Anderson. There was nothing else but the trees that towered over him, nearly blocking the view of a burnt village some distance away. 

_Burnt ? I can smell the smoke from here. Who would burn a village that..._ Daniel froze. _The village._

_The words were disjointed, as if newer sentences were written over the old. Daniel noticed the faint outline of washed off words and wondered why they would do such a thing._

_The village. It... the writing... wasn't done by them... fake..._

Daniel shook his head, a headache beginning to build behind his eyes, the pressure pushing outwards from inside. It was beginning to throb, making him stumble a step. Anderson turned back to the scientist. 

"Doc ? You ok-" 

A low whine stopped whatever he was going to say. Daniel started, looking frantically about as the sound seemed to come from behind them. It was a sound he had heard before. A sound that- 

"Doctor Jackson !" Anderson shouted as he ran towards him. 

Dazed, Daniel wondered why it was so bright all of a sudden, the light hurting his eyes. He looked towards Anderson, who was heading towards him as fast as he could. The soldier was yelling something but Daniel couldn't understand it. Something flew past his eyes, startling him - he looked down and gaped at the black ring that circled his feet. Before he could open his mouth, the light grew brighter, the sound more high pitched. 

And everything vanished. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

"Major Carter," Stone whispered, pointing to the shadows on the walls from the distance. The torches that lined the tunnels, cast long eerie shadows that looked like hungry specters hiding in wait. The ones a few feet away, however, flickered. Carter swore when she realized someone was coming. 

She had figured when she first entered here, that it was possible someone was lying in wait, but after countless turns, with each new tunnel turning out to be empty, she had thought perhaps she was wrong. 

_I hate it when I'm right about something like this_ , Carter thought as she signaled for everyone to find a place to hide. 

Smith and Tesh dashed across to a passage perpendicular to hers. The Major ducked behind a column, giving it a wary eye as she briefly wondered why there were such pillars standing in the middle of the tunnels every so often. A footfall, barely a shuffle, was heard. 

Stiffening, Carter motioned to the others to keep quiet, as she drew her weapon close to her own body with one hand, the other slipping down her thigh at reachable distance of her hunting knife. She eyed the walls, gauging the shadows that approached, mentally calculating how soon before they came to where they were hiding. 

_Three_

_Two_

_One_

_Now_

Just as she turned to face them, she felt a strong arm wrap around her. Carter heard her rifle drop to the floor with a clatter as a large hand covered her mouth. As she struggled, she felt rather than heard Smith and Tesh come out of hiding. But to her dismay, they didn't make a move to help her. Instead, Smith just glared at her captor. 

"Took you long enough." 

\------------------------------------------------------ 

Anderson stared at the empty spot where Jackson had stood before. He skidded to a halt right at the rings as soon as he saw the first one appeared under Doctor Jackson's feet, but the beam whisked the scientist away too fast for him to do anything more than watch. Staggering a step back, he noticed that the tip of one of his boots was sliced off. He had come that close. 

"Damn," the Sergeant muttered as he whipped out his radio. His CO was not going to happy with this turn of events. Hell, he wasn't feeling very overjoyed about this himself right about now. 

"Major," Anderson spoke into the radio. 

"What is it, Anderson ?" Johnson responded almost immediately. "You there already ?" 

"Eh... not exactly, sir. We-" The soldier dropped his radio when he felt an arm snake around his throat, tightening almost immediately. The black device clattered to the ground but remained intact. Anderson could hear Johnson yelling into the radio as another voice, a dual voice, whispered harshly in his ears. 

"Whose side are you on, Tau'ri ?" 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

The light disappeared. Now, there was only darkness. 

Daniel blinked, his headache fading to a dull throb behind his eyes. He wondered if he had been dreaming and shifted a bit to grab his blanket that must have been kicked aside... 

He couldn't move. 

His eyes flew open in alarm when he realized that his arms and legs refused to move in any direction. Jerking to break free from whatever it was that held him, Daniel felt heavy metal coiled around his wrists and ankles. 

_No, this can't be happening again ! It's just a dream. I just have to wake up from this right now..._

"Do not move, Doctor Jackson." 

A firm voice followed by a strong grip on his shoulder, filtered through his haze. He looked up red eyed, wondering why it was so dark here, why couldn't he see who was in front of him. Then he realized that there was something over his eyes, tinting everything into a haze of gold. His vision cleared and he could make out a circle of shadows hovering over him, the center shadow a slight one who approached with the gleam of the jewels in her dress highlighting the hungry sneer on her red lips. 

_No._

"You have returned to us, Beloved." A soft voice took over, hands stroking his cheek like before. Her hands wandered down again, caressing him as she did before, as she commanded him to obey her and him unable to fight the order. 

_No !_

Daniel twisted in his grip, not caring if his flesh tore under the sharp edges of the metal cuffs. He couldn't stay here. He couldn't ! 

Suddenly... the chains were gone. 

Without the support of his bonds, Daniel dropped to his knees, hands slamming down to the damp floor, lacking the strength to hold his weight. Gasping, Daniel struggled to get up. He refused to kneel in front of her. 

A hand on his head stilled him. It was not a strong touch, more like a caress, but its touch was electric. He suddenly couldn't find the strength to move. The strength to tear the device off his face before the pain began anew once more. 

"Remember." 

Hathor's voice was hot in his ear, her hand cupping his chin, tilting his face upward. Daniel twisted his head away, but something slammed into his back, the hiss of a staff weapon activating. 

"Jaafa kree !" Hathor hissed and Daniel imagined that her eyes were probably glowing. He suppressed a shiver. He felt the device shifted on his face and he moved his hands up to try and tear it off of him. 

"You remember how it felt ?" Hathor laughed softly as she easily swatted his hands away from it. "You remember how you begged for me to make it stop ? How you made your promise to us to make it go away?" 

Daniel bit down on his own tongue, to stave off the responding whimper. But Hathor knew and she laughed again. 

"It is time," she whispered. "Time to do what you promised us." 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Not bothering to wonder about what Smith said, she elbowed her attacker in the ribs with one swift move. The hand moved a bit but it was not fast enough for the Major so she bit it. She heard a muffled curse and froze. 

"Colonel ?" 

"Geez, Carter. What's with you and biting anyway ?" Jack hissed. He waved his injured hand with a grumble, shooting a puzzled look towards Smith. "And what do you mean we took long enough ?" 

Smith shrugged. "We lost contact with you two. Went looking and didn't find you guys. Figured you would show up sooner or later, but-" The Lieutenant grinned dryly. "I guess it was later." 

"Sir, where's Tery'ka ?" Carter interrupted, realizing that the To'kra was not behind her CO. Jack scowled. 

"Lost him somewhere in these tunnels. He found this one and we went for a preliminary check when he pulled a Houdini on us." Jack eyed the various tunnels and the column that stood in the center of the crossroads. "Teal'c ?" 

The Jaafa nodded. "I hear it in here also, O'Neill." 

Jack swore softly. "Watch your steps, kids." He nodded towards the pillar. "Apparently, this thing is mechanical. We just saw it bring up some Stargate rings." 

Eyes wide with surprise, Sam brushed her hand across the surface. "I don't feel any vibrations or anything, sir." 

"I didn't either, Carter, but we saw the rings bring up..." Jack paused. "We saw Hathor transported to here..." 

"What ?" Tesh exclaimed before Smith shushed him. They didn't know if sound carried very far in this network of passageways. "Wait a minute, I thought she was..." 

"Dead," Jack finished grimly. "That's what I thought too." 

"Sir." Sam's hands flexed as she realized what it meant. "Daniel was with her the whole time ? She was..." 

"Carter, I think it's pretty much spelled out for me already !" Jack snapped at her. Carter looked surprised and the group fell to an awkward silence. Sighing, Jack eyed the tunnels. "Daniel's here," Jack continued curtly. "And someone told her." 

"He came back ?" Sam breathed. "Sir..." 

"We have to assume she's got your dad and maybe Tery'ka already. We have to beat her to Daniel." The colonel eyed Smith and Tesh. "Anything coming back on where she might be holding Carter and Tery'ka ?" 

"Nothing, Colonel," Tesh said glumly as Smith shook his head. Tesh suddenly perked up when he realized something. "Wait a minute. If Doctor Jackson is here, he needed to have gone through the Stargate to get here. How could Johnson..." 

"We need to ask him," Jack muttered, pulling out his radio. 

"Our radios don't work, sir," Carter reminded him. 

Jack scowled as he remembered. "We don't have time for this. Teal'c, do you think you can track Hathor down through all this ?" 

The Jaafa considered this for a moment. "Yes." He didn't doubt it for a second. Not because he was confident about finding Daniel, but because he had to. 

Jack eyed Carter. "Which direction did you come from ?" Wordlessly, the Major pointed to the tunnel behind her. The Colonel nodded. 

"Okay, that leaves that direction out. And we came from that one," Jack waved towards the left tunnel behind Teal'c. "That leaves us with two tunnels left." The older man chewed thoughtfully at the prospects. "Carter, you take the left one and I'll take the right. Teal'c, you're with me. Smith and Tesh, you follow Major Carter. Got that ?" 

"Should we split up, sir ?" Carter spoke up, not really out of disrespect, but more out of reluctance. The idea of approaching Hathor without enough manpower was not one of her most wanted things to do on her list. 

"I don't think we have much a choice now, Major," Jack pointed out grimly. "She knows Daniel's here and obviously she's eager to get her claws back into him again." **Over my dead body.** "We can't waste time trying one tunnel only having to backtrack when it turns out to be the wrong one." 

Pausing, Jack tossed over a couple of grenades he had clipped to his belt. Tesh caught them neatly without question. 

"You see them, General Carter, Tery'ka, or Daniel, grab them, bomb them and get the hell out of there. Watch for those pillars. They may be transportation rings. Don't get caught in them. And no looking for the rest of the team." 

"But..." Tesh protested as he handed the explosives to Carter. 

Jack looked at the soldier sternly. "No waiting for the other guy. Better some get out than risk the whole team. Got it ?" 

Sam jumped in before Tesh could argue the point, giving him a warning look. "Understood, sir. And vice versa." 

"Yeah." The colonel didn't look pleased with the thought, but agreed anyway. "Main concern is search and rescue." And to find Daniel. With that, he turned towards the tunnel he chose, Teal'c nodding a silent farewell to the others for him. 

Carter stared at their departing backs for a moment, before motioning the others to follow her. Smith went after her, hand on his weapon. Tesh stopped for a moment, frowning at his surroundings, disturbed to find himself noticing the minor cracks on stone. He rubbed his eyes wearily. There was something. Something- 

"Tesh ?" Carter called out softly when she realized that he had stopped. 

Nodding apologetically, the soldier dropped his hands and went hurrying after them. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

He could hear the words, hear them talking as they hurried down the tunnels, their voices low to avoid detection. 

But they no longer made sense. 

He couldn't understand the words any more. 

Couldn't understand what they were saying. 

All he could do was follow them down the tunnels, memories of pain returning to him like vicious snarling beasts snapping at his heels. He hurried his pace before they realized he was slowing. He had to hurry, before the pain began again. 

They were looking for him. Searching the darkness. 

So was he. 

But... but... he couldn't remember why. 

No... he remembered. 

That was why he had the gun, right ? 

He had to hurry. 

Find him. Kill him. And then the pain will stop, just like she said. 

Find him. 

Kill him. 

Chanting this, his feet picked up the pace before the female could turn around and call his name again. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

The tunnels seemed to never end. Jack was beginning to wish that he had marked the walls in the beginning but knew that it wouldn't have been wise. Anyone would have been able to see the signals and know that someone else was here. 

"O'Neill," Teal'c whispered low, one strong hand on his shoulder to tell him that he heard something. 

Without asking, the colonel followed him down a right turn. He could see down the end of the passageway, a dim light. A room perhaps. 

The whine that trickled out to their ears, told him that someone else had arrived. But Jack couldn't make out the low buzz of voices coming from that direction. 

Suddenly, two Jaafa guards came out from that end of the hall, moving further and further away from Jack's position as they stopped in front of a wall. Touching the surface, the wall slide open and the outside light came through. 

An exit. 

That was all fine and dandy to Jack, but he wasn't about to leave until he found what he was looking for. 

Laughter sang out into the halls, laughter that didn't belong in such a dark place and Jack knew. 

Daniel was in there. 

_Hang on_ , Jack thought as he crept along the wall, towards the doorway where the laughter was coming from. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Sam froze when she heard the laughter. 

Narrowing her eyes, trying to see in the dark, she saw the faint patch of light shining from a door to her far left. She could see the shadows of its occupants pacing about. Flexing her hand over the handle of her weapon, she pressed herself flat against the wall. Smith and Tesh mimicked her, stealthily tracing the wall towards the room. Making her way closer and closer to the lit doorway, she was almost out in the open when two guards exited the room and made some sort of motion towards the wall. Carter watched it slide open, revealing the lush greenery of outside. Turning her head, she saw by Smith and Tesh's faces that they saw it too. 

Grimly, she motioned to them with five fingers, silently telling them on her count, to rush in at her signal. The two nodded, Tesh slipping a finger through the loop to release the pin on the grenade at the word go. Smith gripped the zat gun and gave her an okay sign. 

Reaching the doorway, Carter slid down to the floor, pulling out a rod with a small mirror attached to it. She eased it over to the edge of the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tesh and Smith standing ready behind her. There was no way they could get to the other side without them noticing. 

The tiny reflective surface revealed two guards surrounding Tery'ka, another two standing a few feet away at the center. The Tok'ra appeared to be unharmed, standing stiffly as if at attention. She nearly dropped the mirror when she saw the leader of the guards, circling a kneeling figure like a wolf approaching its prey. 

Hathor. 

And Daniel. 

Carter closed her eyes briefly. She knew the colonel had told her that the Goa'uld Queen was still alive, but it was still a shock to see her there and it hurt to see her friend in her clutches for what seemed to be the second time. She looked into the mirror again and noted that her father was not among them. 

She didn't know if that was good or bad. 

_Hang on, Daniel_ , Sam thought. _We're right here. She's not going to have you this time._

Then again, she shouldn't have had Daniel at all. 

"We are so glad you have returned to us, Beloved," Hathor said, the pleasure clear in her double voice, the eyes glowing eerily brighter in the dark. Carter had to stop herself from screaming at her when she saw Hathor lean forward and kissed him on the lips. Daniel didn't move but Hathor must have seen something in his face because she laughed. 

"It is already too late." 

_You bet it is_ , Carter said when she nodded towards the others. She mouthed the word five and counted down. 

Five. Tesh and Smith shuffled closer to the doorway. 

Four. Carter lifted her own zat gun out of her holster now, not wanting to take the chance of hitting Daniel or Tery'ka with the rifle. 

Three. Hathor backed away for some reason. 

Two. Carter caught a glimpse of O'Neill on the other side of the tunnel, still a few feet away. He saw her fingers counting down and only nodded as he and Teal'c crept closer. 

One. 

And the dark suddenly filled with light. 

\--------------------------- 

Jack reached the doorway just as Carter rushed in, assigning himself as cover with a quick nod of his head towards the Major. The low pitched sounds of the zat guns told him that the guards were being dealt with and he rushed into the room, his eyes searching frantically for one person. 

There. 

Daniel was pushed to the ground by Tery'ka, the To'kra whispering something to the scientist's ear as he slipped a gun to him, shielding the scientist with his own body. Jack tried to reach the pair but the fighting that went on blocked his way. 

Hathor hissed as one shot from a stray zat gun passed closely by her. Jaafa guards surrounded her with fierce loyalty. She could do nothing as the woman warrior grabbed her Beloved up from the floor, shouted something to her men and raced out the room. Hathor's eyes shone as she recognized the woman to be Carter, yet another thorn on her side. 

"Jaafa ! Yhou klem nyet ha ! Jaafa !" Hathor screamed as she saw both Daniel and Tery'ka being taken away from the room, half her guards senseless at her feet. She lifted her hand up, exposing the ribbon device, about to aim at Carter's back as they fled towards the open exit to the outside when she saw him. 

Standing there, shouting as he shoved away her last remaining guard. 

Pulling at one Tau'ri as he caught sight of more coming in through the rings of her Stargate, materializing as the rings shot up from the ground. He stood there, totally oblivious to her attention, totally unaware of her plan as he barked orders to the others. 

O'Neill. 

The one who should have been her First Prime. 

The one who killed her. 

She whispered the word like it was a scorned lover's name, her lips thinned as she recalled his betrayal. Even now, her host body's flesh still shiver from the painstaking cold that it suffered when O'Neill pushed her into the pit. 

_"We," the Tau'ri O'Neill said harshly into her ear even as she screamed her outrage, "would just like you to **go away** !" And with a push from his hands, she fell into the smoke and ice. _

_Flailing out with her hands, she clawed the ridges that lined the pit, dangling above the liquid, hidden in the frigid steam. She could hear O'Neill and the Carter woman talking. The traitorous Tok'ra spy crawling away from her presumed death site. Hathor seethed as she tried to pull up but her limbs lost all enhanced strength and she dropped so quickly, she barely registered it fast enough to scream._

_Pain._

_For the first time in centuries, she felt pain. A coldness that felt hot on fragile muscles. Even when she was in the Tau'ri's base long ago, the flames rising in the water as bullets were fired towards her, there was no pain._

_Here, there was pain._

_She could feel her control slipping away, her grip on her host's will for many years, snapping like fragile rope as the cold cracked her skin like brittle paper. Now she screamed._

_So this was what it felt like to be mortal._

_To not be a god._

_She did not like it._

_Her host awakened instantly with the cold and it rebelled against her power even as it reeled back in horror that the freedom gained was too brief to savor._

_Now her host screamed._

_Then it became dark. It was an uncomfortable one, unlike the soothing darkness within the confines of her golden sarcophagus. It howled of eternity, of weakness, of vulnerability._

_Until...._

_He came and drained the liquid, almost immediately after the Tau'ri left. It had felt like forever to Hathor, but in reality it had only been seconds. The liquid left her skin and exposed her to the air, began forming droplets all over her like gems._

_She couldn't move._

_She was dying. Even the fast healing powers of the Go'uald larvae could not withstand such frigid temperatures._

_Hathor, Queen of the Gods, eternal Goddess was dying._

_This could not be. It was not possible, it was inconceivable even, that a god could die._

_"Be still," a deep voice commanded as a warm beam, which she recognized was a healing hand device, swept over her. "This will ease your pain until I can get you to the Cha'apai."_

_"My ship." Her once smooth voice was cracking like an old woman's, her hair breaking apart unevenly, the shafts cracking from the cold. The strands thawed and she could feel the blunt ends of her once luminous hair scratching her neck and face._

_"I will take you there."_

_Eyes regained sight and Hathor saw a man, dressed in a dark tunic, hair pulled back, staring intently at her. Despite the fact he had rescued her, she felt outraged that he dared set his eyes on her now, in this condition._

_"Look away !" Hathor hissed, regaining some of her strength as the healing device rejuvenated numb limbs. She shoved the wailing voice of her host to the back of her mind. She would have to start all over again to regain complete command of this body when she returned to the sarcophagus._

_To her surprise, the man complied, turning away from the sight of her vulnerability._

_Hathor got up. To her disgust, she found herself trembling, her skin blotted with dark ugly bruises where the veins had exploded underneath her skin from the cold._

_"Who are you ?" She mustered as much of her voice as possible._

_"A spy for Apophis."_

_"He is dead," Hathor gloated, remembering that piece of information from the Tau'ri she had captured, when he had believed himself to have woken up at SGC in the future._

_"I know. Now I wish to be yours." The man stood up, bowing his head in a sign of obedience. "Give me power and I will give you what you wish the most."_

_Hathor's eyes gleamed as she waved her ribbon device above her. A door slid open behind the false monitors near the cryogenic tube, revealing a staircase leading down to her secret chamber. She allowed the man to take her by the elbow for support._

_"What is it that you want the most, my Queen ?"_

_Hathor smiled again as they reached the door. Her eyes burned with the memory of one face. The one responsible for showing her a glimpse of her mortality._

_"Vengeance."_

Hathor blinked, frowning at herself for the temporary lapse. Even now, her host rebelled against her. She had not spent enough time in the sarcophagus. She had to limit her time, giving it to someone else. But she would return to its healing embrace soon. 

After this. 

O'Neill turned a little and looked startled to see her watching him intently. His rifle rose as if to fire at her, but the guards that were just arriving surrounded her protectively. She heard Apophis' former First Prime shouting at him and he slipped out of the room, to the exit. 

The guards cursed and were about to give chase when Hathor lifted a hand, halting them, motioning only three to follow them. Puzzled, the other Jaafa didn't argue, milling about the room confused. 

"It shall all come to be," Hathor breathed and her skin tingled again, this time with anticipation. Soon, she would have her revenge and her Beloved would rejoin her. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

Sam latched onto Daniel's wrist, too rushed to give apology for any pain caused by her tight grasp over bandaged skin. Hauling him up, she half pulled him out of the room, out through the exit she had seen before, dodging the battle around her. Already, she could hear Tesh and Smith behind her, shouting for Colonel O'Neill. 

She had her orders. So why was she slowing down ? 

Pulling her friend closer to her, Carter stared anxiously at the doorway. In seconds, it exploded with escaping people running at top speed out of the place. It was then that she realized there were no walls. The place they just escaped from was the mountain itself, one of the distance grassy slopes beyond the original complex she had surveyed when they first came to find SG-5 and Daniel. 

They were a great distance away from the Stargate and freedom. Too great a distance. 

She saw O'Neill coming out, his hands now filled with a staff weapon since he had lost his rifle during the fight. He whipped around abruptly and tossed a grenade through the door after yanking the pin out with his teeth. 

"Heads up !" he bellowed as he tossed the explosive in. The guards who had followed, shouted as they realized what it was that rolled to their feet. The explosion destroyed the exit and Carter no longer saw her pursuers. He looked up and caught Carter with Daniel straining to seek him out from the chaos. 

"Get the hell out of there !" Jack bellowed, anger coloring his words as he wondered furiously why she was still standing there. "We're okay here ! Rendezvous back at the Stargate ! Try and contact Johnson !" 

Carter was about to shout back that they should go together, when the rubble covering the exit disintegrated with a short staff weapon blast. 

No time to regroup now, she pulled Daniel along with her, Tesh and Smith directly behind her. A quick glance behind her and she saw her team split up with Teal'c, Jack, and Tery'ka heading in the other direction. 

Muttering a silent prayer for her comrades, she jumped into a ditch, her men following, and they tracked the stream in hopes of escape. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

It was so loud. 

The screaming, the shouting. 

He wanted to clamp his ears shut, to block out the noise... 

Block out.... her. 

As his legs pumped underneath him, carrying him away from her, the voice grew louder and louder, almost as if she was running alongside him. 

Kill. 

He had to kill. 

Only then would the pain go away. 

Her words screamed at him while his heart thumped wildly until, finally, he vaguely heard someone calling for a halt. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

"Don't see them no more." Smith panted as they stopped by the riverbank. He swallowed as he got a good look at the white water roaring below a few feet away. "Ah crap." 

Carter whipped her head around, trying to see what best possible path there would be to head back for the Stargate. She took out her tracking device and turned it on. The signal came almost instantly from the radio transmitter left by the Stargate, a precaution they always took. She groaned as she realized that their destination was a lot farther than she had first calculated. 

"What the hell is that ?" Tesh hissed as he kneeled down towards the still silent Daniel, who Sam had sat down on the ground. The young man was breathing harshly from the run, arms on the ground to support the weight. Tesh fingered the metallic band around his face. "Looks like some sort of... visor or something." 

Carter turned sharply towards them. Guiltily, she remembered seeing that thing on her friend's face back there, but the heat of battle left her no time to check. And now, after being on the run for so long, it had slipped her mind. 

"Let me see," she murmured, handing her rifle over to Smith. The Lieutenant stood over them, keeping watch, but he occasionally glanced back with a worried eye. Daniel weakly reached out and found her hand. 

"S-Sam ?" 

"It's okay," she said softly, noting that she could see his eyes through the piece. "Can you see me here ?" 

Daniel nodded. He reached towards his face, feebly trying to pull it off. Sam stopped him. 

"Wait, let me make sure its okay to..." She gasped as a spark leaped from the ends of the device that were wrapped behind his head and snapped at her fingertips. The jolt raced up her arm. Daniel groaned, slumping forward. 

"Major." Tesh surged forward to catch Daniel before he could fall on his face. Smith leaned forward anxiously. "You alright ?" 

Nodding, Carter stared at the device as it serenely dropped to Daniel's lap as if on its own accord. 

"I must have released it somehow. Daniel ?" She touched her friend's shoulder briefly. "You okay ?" 

Daniel tried to sit up straighter. "O-okay..." He looked up with a weak smile. "Headache though." He paused, his eyes darting around. "Where's Jack ?" 

"We got separated back there," Tesh muttered as he got up, dusting off the dirt from his fatigues. 

"We're meeting up at the Stargate, Daniel," Sam reassured her friend. "We're just resting here a bit before we continue." 

"Thirsty..." Daniel mumbled, looking a little embarrassed at admitting it. 

Sam smiled. "I'll fill the canteen. Smith. You and Tesh okay with watching our backs ?" 

"What I do best," Smith quipped, lifting his rifle with a grin. 

"I thought it was burning the rations," Tesh retorted but continued to walk along the edge of the clearing, keeping an eye out for Jaafa guards. 

"Ha ha," Smith grumbled as Sam shook her head. She clapped Daniel's shoulder briefly before heading for the river with her canteen. She leaned forward a bit, careful to not go too close to the fast running water and let the river trickle into the open mouth of her container. 

Wondering briefly if she should try radio the colonel now to check on them, she didn't see the device on Daniel's lap beginning to glow. She also didn't see eyes turning towards the light like a moth to fire. 

What she did see though when she was done filling her canteen, was the gun. Sam looked up, about to declared her task done and froze when she saw the gun in his hands. The gun trembled along with the hand, but its meaning was still clear enough for her. Suddenly the pieces made sense to her. And she no longer had a question in her mind about the entire mission. So she lifted her hands up in surrender. 

But she didn't have a chance. 

No time for any pleas. 

He fired. 

Spinning from the impact, Sam staggered back, barely feeling the other bullet hit her high in the chest and felt her boots slip, depositing into the churning river behind her. The water shrieked in her ears, nearly blocking out the shouting and the last two shots. Her last view, her last thought, before her eyes blurred, was Daniel, on his knees, and she was drifting too far away to help him. 

++++++++++++++++++++++ 

He heard the shots. They were loud, loud enough to make his feet skid to a halt, stopping Teal'c and Tery'ka in their tracks. The Tok'ra said nothing as Jack looked about, wondering where the shots came from. 

"O'Neill." Teal'c pointed towards the east, off the trail towards the Stargate. 

The man nodded, agreeing with Teal'c's assessment. He fingered his radio with a scowl. He didn't dare risk using it to contact Carter. God knows if they were still being pursued. 

"Come on," he whispered to Tery'ka as he followed Teal'c towards the source of the sound. 

The three reached a clearing minutes later when Teal'c halted. The sounds of a river could be heard close by. Jack pulled Tery'ka down to the shadowy line of bushes. The Jaafa hid behind a tree and silently pointed to the clearing just a few feet ahead. 

Two men in the familiar SGC fatigues were on the ground face down. Jack couldn't tell who they were, but the sight of the uniforms made his throat tighten. He silently handed his staff weapon over to Tery'ka, motioning the To'kra to keep an eye out for their pursuers and went over, half crouched to where Teal'c was. 

Even from there, Jack still couldn't see who they were and he gritted his teeth. He whistled softly, hoping maybe they were just playing possum but none of them replied. 

"Cover me," he whispered to Teal'c as he took the zat gun from the Jaafa. The alien nodded, steadying his staff weapon. 

Taking a deep breath, Jack went over quickly to the two men. Tugging at the helmets, he exposed the heads and checked their pulses. Sighing in relief when he found two regular beats, he turned to tell Teal'c to tell him who they were when he heard the snap and hiss of a staff weapon firing. 

With an abrupt sound, the shot hit Teal'c on the side, the Jaafa having spun around at the first sound. Teal'c crumbled to the ground silent. Jack shot up in alarm, his arm out with his zat gun towards the shooter when he saw who it was. 

Tery'ka. 

"You !" the colonel hissed as he saw the Tok'ra's face twist into a sneer. 

The Tok'ra said nothing, slipping back into the shadows. Jack was about to go check on Teal'c before giving chase when he heard a twig snap on the other direction. 

"Who's there ?" Jack barked, aiming his weapon towards the newest intruder. 

Tree branches parted, revealing the olive green uniform and Jack lowered his weapon. 

"You." This time, the words were said with relief. "What the hell happened here ? And where's..." 

Click. 

Jack froze when he saw the gleaming black pistol in the newcomer's hands. 

"No," Jack said softly, his eyes glued to the gun in disbelief. 

It had been a trap all along. 

When Colonel Jack O'Neill had first taken up this mission, he'd had a bad feeling about the place. Something about the whole thing that gave him a chill in the bones that he knew had nothing to do with the cold. But the urgency for the success of this mission superceded his instincts and he had gone blindly through the Stargate with the rest of his team. 

Now staring at the business end of a gun, Jack decided that he should listen to his instincts more often. The colonel tried to step forward, tried to talk, but the gun swung towards him and all Jack could do was helplessly watched as the hammer cocked into the barrel. 

"You don't want to do this," Jack said softly, eyes glued to the face rather than the gun. The colonel wanted to tell him to lower his gun, that everything was going to be all right. 

But he never had a chance. 

The shot rang throughout the forest, it's vibrations echoing, the sound shattering it's natural silence. Strange white birds took flight, suddenly filling the dark emerald sky with their startled calls.

**Author's Note:**

> Original note: This story takes place right after the third season cliffhanger "Into the Fire". For those who hadn't watched it yet, Captain Samantha Carter is now MAJOR Carter. I want to thank Rowan and Graculus for their help. This fic would be 99.9% less without both of their help.


End file.
